Kane Fired by
Hawaii Board of Education
At about 1:15 a.m. on February 20, the Hawaii State Board of Education voted 7-6 to fire State Library Director Bart Kane. The decision followed more than an hour of testimony from 19 librarians and others, some of whom carried signs saying "Kane Fire."
The board had just received a harsh financial report from State Auditor Marion Higa, in addition to last month's unfavorable management audit. Fine Arts Reference Librarian Sarah Preble told American Libraries that "some branch heads and section heads really put their neck on the line." Kane will remain in the position until June 30.
On February 18, legislators had quizzed Kane about his need for a highly paid special assistant. A bill introduced in the Senate Education Committee seeks to eliminate the position held by Assistant State Librarian John Penebacker, whose salary of approximately $89,000 is $4,000 more than Kane's own.
Posted February 23, 1998.
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