Tax department ‘whistleblower’ now under investigation after director cleared of allegations

State Tax Director Gary Suganuma has been cleared of allegations he had violated the Department of Taxation’s Workplace Violence Action Plan and various executive branch policies regarding discrimination and a harassment-free workplace.

But one of the six employees who spoke to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser in October 2025 alleging Suganuma had created an abusive and hostile work environment has since been placed on paid leave while he is now under investigation.

Min Meng, the Tax Department’s administrative services officer and its former human resources specialist, claims the state has violated state and federal whistleblower protection laws and is retaliating against him for the allegations against Suganuma he originally made Sept. 24, 2025.

A hand-delivered letter dated July 16 from Kristen Ross Sakamoto, the Tax Department’s deputy director, notified Meng that he was being placed on paid leave while being investigated for “inappropriate conduct” that included allegations Meng “widely distributed confidential information about a job applicant,” “widely distributed confidential medical information about employees” and “retaliated against a witness who participated in an investigation.”

On Oct. 16, Meng wrote to state legislators and his union, the Hawaii Government Employees Association, that “the investigation may violate protections afforded under the Hawaii Whistleblower Protection Act.”

Meng wrote that he informed state Attorney General Anne Lopez and Brenna Hashimoto, director of the state Department of Human Resources Development — two cabinet-level positions in Gov. Josh Green’s administration — and the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission in September 2025 that he considered his original complaint to be protected whistleblower activity.

Meng declined to comment to the Star-Advertiser about the latest developments.

He has requested that state legislators look into issues including the use of $75,000 in Tax Department funds to hire outside law firm ES&A to investigate Suganuma, which cost $25,000 more than the original contract, along with examining the events that led to Meng being placed on leave in July.

The state Department of the Attorney General said in a statement that the allegations against Suganuma “were thoroughly examined by a third-party investigator. While we are not able to discuss any subsequent pending personnel matters, the State does take alleged violations of its workplace policies seriously and will investigate such allegations when warranted.”

Meng told legislators Oct. 16 in a detailed timeline of events over the past year that he has “experienced substantial stress, anxiety, and health-related challenges and is currently receiving treatment and support from healthcare professionals.”

Unlike Suganuma, who remained in place as tax director while he was investigated, Meng included copies of a hand-delivered letter dated July 16 that he is barred from Tax Department offices and had to surrender his identification badge, keys and any other state property he possessed.

In October 2025, just after the investigation of Suganuma began, Meng told the Star-Advertiser, “We are counting on the system working. All we ask for is a safe and non-bullying work environment.”

Four of Meng’s colleagues and another manager who left the more than 400- position Tax Department agreed to be identified by name at the time in the Star-Advertiser.

The managers alleged that Suganuma regularly berated Meng, along with them and others in manager meetings and in front of other department employees. They said that some managers and rank-and-file employees reported suffering stress-related issues because of the degree to which Suganuma yells and waves his finger in their faces.

According to Meng at the time, seven “top managers” had left the department in less than three years after Suganuma took over in 2023 after he was appointed by Green and confirmed by the state Senate.

The Tax Department managers who spoke to the Star-Advertiser said they witnessed Suganuma’s interactions with Meng and corroborated his allegations, while receiving similar treatment.

Green’s office did not respond to a request for comment last week.

Meng declined to comment but provided state legislators and the HGEA, which represents him, with a packet of correspondence including a June 5 email from Green’s chief of staff, Brooke Wilson.

She wrote to Meng that his allegations against Suganuma “have been thoroughly investigated by an external investigator, and it was found by a preponderance of the evidence that Director Suganuma did not violate any of these policies. I concur with the findings.”

Suganuma, Wilson wrote, had been investigated for alleged violations of the Tax Department’s Workplace Violence Action Plan and other policies including the executive branch’s discrimination and harassment-free workplace policy.

“I understand you brought up other issues that you alleged were violations of state and federal laws,” Wilson wrote in reference to Meng’s allegations that his whistleblower protections had been violated.

“As you were previously informed in my letter dated October 16, 2025, these allegations were not investigated because administrative investigations do not review whether laws were violated. … As a reminder, our Workplace Violence and EEO Policies protect individuals from being retaliated against because of their involvement in a complaint and/or investigation; any retaliation against such individuals is prohibited.”

HGEA told the Star-Advertiser it is waiting for the outcome of the investigation before determining how to proceed.

In January, the Senate Ways and Means Committee raised questions about why the initial $50,000 contract for the ES&A investigation into Suganuma had increased to $75,000. During a committee hearing over the Tax Department’s budget, Chair Donovan Dela Cruz (D, Mililani-Wahiawa- Whitmore Village) questioned why the agency itself hired a law firm to investigate its director.

Suganuma did not provide a direct response.

In an Oct. 9 email, Ways and Means Committee member Sen. Donna Mercado Kim (D, Kalihi-Fort Shafter-Red Hill) wrote to Meng that, “I would like to know whether there have been any significant developments, what actions have been taken, and whether the matter has been resolved or remains outstanding.”

“Your update will help me better understand the current situation and determine whether any further legislative attention or oversight may be warranted.”

Kim did not respond to repeated requests for comment, nor did Dela Cruz.

Meng wrote to legislators that the Tax Department has since hired Marr Jones &Wang LLP to investigate him.

He would like legislators to look into why he is being investigated and was placed on leave, alleging he is the victim of “unlawful retaliation under applicable laws, collective bargaining agreements, or whistle- blower protections.”