Trustees Give Embattled Galante The Boot
Following a nearly year-long controversy, the new Queens Borough Public Library board of trustees severed ties last Wednesday night, Dec. 17, with its embattled president and chief executive officer.
In September, the board sent Thomas W. Galante on a paid leave of absence amid a number of ongoing investigations into his stewardship of the library system. Galante reportedly authorized a six-figure renovation of his Jamaica office and other lavish expenses as the library system cut services and staff due to reductions in government funding.
“This evening, the board of trustees heard a report by counsel,” according to a Queens Library statement issued late last Wednesday night. “Based on that and a prior report by counsel, a decision was made to terminate immediately Mr. Galante’s employment.”
Galante’s contract, according to the board’s resolution, included a clause “which sets forth the compensation that the library shall pay to Mr. Galante following his termination for cause.” The resolution authorized such payment, but the library declined to offer specific details.
Interim President and CEO Bridget Quinn-Carey, who took the helm in Galante’s absence, currently remains in that position.
“As the library moves forward, the board of trustees will continue working to ensure greater transparency and the proper administration of the library and its funds in furtherance of its mission,” the Queens Library statement continued. “Queens Library will continue to provide outstanding value to the people of Queens.”
Local elected officials welcomed the development in statements sent to the Times Newsweekly soon after Galante’s removal was announced.
“Tonight’s action further restores public faith and trust in the management of the Queens Library,” Queens Borough President Melinda Katz said last Wednesday. “The reformed board of trustees continues to move the library in the right direction consistent with its educational purpose. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and the dark days of this saga are finally behind us.”
“For the past year, my representatives have attended hours of meetings to review and assist in the board’s reform, its processes and its leadership,” added Public Advocate Letitia James. “The days of former board members and leadership’s lavish dinners and questionable expenditures are over.”
“The termination of Thomas Galante as president of the Queens Borough Library is long overdue and ends a sordid chapter in this library’s history,” City Comptroller Scott Stringer said. “Transparency and proper controls are the cornerstones of good nonprofit governance. My office is currently conducting comprehensive audits of all three New York City library systems. Separately, in my capacity as an ex-officio trustee at the Queens Library, we have already begun working with the board to strengthen internal controls to ensure greater transparency.”
In October, Stringer-as exofficio trustee-openly questioned various expenditures made between 2008 and 2013 as outlined in a letter to the board of trustees. They included postmeeting dinners with board trustees costing in excess of $1,000; expensive furniture purchases; autographed sports memorabilia for Galante’s office; and tickets to a Maroon 5 concert billed as an “employee appreciation gift.”
The downward spiral
The scandal brought Galante’s nearly 30-year career at Queens Library to an end and shook the institution to its very foundation.
In January of this year, reports surfaced that Galante collected an annual salary of nearly $400,000, though he claimed it was comparable to compensation received by other nonprofit executives across the country. Moreover, he also authorized a more than $100,000 renovation of his office at the Central Library branch in Jamaica.
Meanwhile, Queens Library reduced services and cut staff members in previous years; the cutbacks were deemed necessary due to reduced government funding.
Questions also surfaced regarding how Queens Library selected private contractors to perform certain services, such as custodial tasks, rather than turning to union contractors.
The reports spurred inquiries by various government officials and agencies, including Katz, Stringer, the Department of Investigation, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. Galante and the board of trustees were called upon to provide full details about decisions and expenses made, but to no avail.
In April, the Queens Library board of trustees deadlocked 9-9 on a resolution to place Galante on leave pending the results of the investigations against him and the library. The split vote infuriated Queens lawmakers who demanded a change in leadership; in a letter to Trustees Chair Gabriel Taussig, Katz said she could not appropriate additional funds to the library while Galante faced a federal probe.
The Department of Design and Construction went as far as to freeze $20 million in capital funds for Queens Library projects.
Then in May, the trustees further bristled lawmakers and good government advocates when it agreed to provide financial information to Stringer based on a limited disclosure agreement it reached with former City Comptroller Alan Hevesi in 1997. Stringer sought full disclosure of the library’s finances for his audit and sought a court injunction to declare the 1997 agreement null and void.
Road to reform
State Sen. Michael Gianaris and Assemblyman Jeffrion Aubry-with Katz’s assistance- subsequently authored and introduced state legislation granting the mayor and borough president with authority to remove Queens Library trustees. The mayor and borough president share responsibility in appointing the 19 trustees, but previously, only two-thirds of trustees could vote to dismiss one of its own.
The legislation-which included further measures aimed at reforming Queens Library’s finances and expanding accountability-passed the state legislature in June and was quickly signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
That same month, the New York Daily News reported that the trustees were prepared to vote on a resolution terminating Galante but also providing him with an $800,000 severance package. The board tabled its vote after the story broke.
With new powers secured, Katz and Mayor Bill de Blasio removed in July eight Queens Library trustees who rebuffed calls to remove Galante from power and/or provide full financial disclosure to Stringer. The ousted eight filed a federal lawsuit blocking their removal that was subsequently dismissed.
Four new members were appointed in time for the board’s Sept. 11 meeting, during which point the trustees voted to place Galante on paid leave and fully comply with Stringer’s audit.
