BANE, LONGTIME VALLEY LEGISLATOR, AT 85.

Tom Bane. a Democrat who represented part of the San Fernando Valley in the state Legislature . for 24 years, has died. He was 85.

Bane, who lived in Tarzana, died Saturday after succumbing to a long respiratory illness.

``Tom Bane is a big part of this state's history,'' said Assemblyman Robert Hertzberg, a Democrat who represents Bane's old district, which covers Van Nuys, and parts of Encino, North Hollywood and Reseda. ``He truly was a giant.''

Bane retired from politics in 1992 as chairman of the powerful Assembly Rules Committee. The post made him an influential righthand man to former Assembly Speakers Jesse Unruh and Willie Brown Jr.

As a lawmaker representing the 40th Assembly District, Bane drafted legislation regulating crime, automobile insurance and the savings and loan industry.

A 1988 law drafted by Bane mandated harsh punishments for hate crimes in California. Congress is attempting to duplicate the law nationwide.

U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Woodland Hills, described Bane as ``definitely of the old school.'' During his campaigns, Bane often walked the streets of his district, rather than rely on advertisements to drum up support.

``He would go into a coffee shop and pretend that he recognized somebody in the back and proceed to say hello to everybody else in the restaurant,'' Sherman said. ``That kind of grass-roots accessibility is the way democracy is supposed to work.''

Bane graduated from Burbank High School.

He was first elected to the Assembly in 1958 but left for a job in the banking industry six years later after an unsuccessful bid for a congressional seat.

He returned to the Assembly in 1974 where, unaffected by term limits, Bane remained until his retirement.

Bane married his wife, Marlene, in 1979. The two were known as a power couple, and were often engaged in political consulting and nonprofit projects.

In the late 1980s, when Bane headed a national lupus foundation and his wife was chairwoman of a state lupus appropriations board, a coalition of lupus support groups accused her of funneling about $800,000 in state funds to a doctor who donated to Bane's campaign. An investigation by the state Attorney General's Office turned up no evidence of wrongdoing wrong doing.

Marlene Bane described her husband as ``the straightest guy I ever knew in my life. He lived honestly and loved the law, the Torah, me, his children and grandchildren very much.''

Bane also is survived by three children and six grandchildren. Funeral services are scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday at Eden Memorial Park in Mission Hills.

From: Los Angeles Daily News 1999

BANE, LONGTIME VALLEY LEGISLATOR, AT 85.

Tom Bane. a Democrat who represented part of the San Fernando Valley in the state Legislature . for 24 years, has died. He was 85.

Bane, who lived in Tarzana, died Saturday after succumbing to a long respiratory illness.

``Tom Bane is a big part of this state's history,'' said Assemblyman Robert Hertzberg, a Democrat who represents Bane's old district, which covers Van Nuys, and parts of Encino, North Hollywood and Reseda. ``He truly was a giant.''

Bane retired from politics in 1992 as chairman of the powerful Assembly Rules Committee. The post made him an influential righthand man to former Assembly Speakers Jesse Unruh and Willie Brown Jr.

As a lawmaker representing the 40th Assembly District, Bane drafted legislation regulating crime, automobile insurance and the savings and loan industry.

A 1988 law drafted by Bane mandated harsh punishments for hate crimes in California. Congress is attempting to duplicate the law nationwide.

U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Woodland Hills, described Bane as ``definitely of the old school.'' During his campaigns, Bane often walked the streets of his district, rather than rely on advertisements to drum up support.

``He would go into a coffee shop and pretend that he recognized somebody in the back and proceed to say hello to everybody else in the restaurant,'' Sherman said. ``That kind of grass-roots accessibility is the way democracy is supposed to work.''

Bane graduated from Burbank High School.

He was first elected to the Assembly in 1958 but left for a job in the banking industry six years later after an unsuccessful bid for a congressional seat.

He returned to the Assembly in 1974 where, unaffected by term limits, Bane remained until his retirement.

Bane married his wife, Marlene, in 1979. The two were known as a power couple, and were often engaged in political consulting and nonprofit projects.

In the late 1980s, when Bane headed a national lupus foundation and his wife was chairwoman of a state lupus appropriations board, a coalition of lupus support groups accused her of funneling about $800,000 in state funds to a doctor who donated to Bane's campaign. An investigation by the state Attorney General's Office turned up no evidence of wrongdoing wrong doing.

Marlene Bane described her husband as ``the straightest guy I ever knew in my life. He lived honestly and loved the law, the Torah, me, his children and grandchildren very much.''

Bane also is survived by three children and six grandchildren. Funeral services are scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday at Eden Memorial Park in Mission Hills.

From: Los Angeles Daily News 1999