Baker & Taylor to get
‘Dear John’ letter

The state is about to cancel the
controversial book-buying deal

By Debra Barayuga
Star-Bulletin

A letter notifying Baker & Taylor that its book-buying contract with the state will be canceled may be ready by the end of the week, a deputy attorney general says.

State Librarian Bart Kane and the state attorney general's office are hashing out details to justify canceling the contract that critics say has eroded library collections and the morale of library employees.

"We hope we'll finish what we're working on by the end of the week," said John Dellera, deputy attorney general, declining to comment on the substance of the letter being prepared for North Carolina-based Baker & Taylor.

A blue ribbon panel recommended that the contract end by June 30, following complaints about delays in receiving materials and the titles chosen by the company. The Board of Education voted June 19 to accept the recommendation.

But the board did not specify a date for ending the contract -- drawing criticism from librarians that the contract won't end as quickly as they'd like.

Board Chairwoman Karen Knudsen earlier said if the contract wasn't canceled by yesterday, the end of fiscal year 1997, at least something would be in motion.

The contract provides for a 10-day period for Baker & Taylor to respond in case of termination for cause, Dellera said.

"Aside from that, there is no specific time limit established by the contract.

"It's a contract dispute -- we want to make sure of our grounds before we move forward."