problem with kpsewhich path , it used to work

[Mike Marchywka]

I recently changed ubuntu installs and had been making a list
of required files to build a given latex document with a script
that AFAICT had worked well prior to the switch. Now it is droppping
bibliography files. I got it to work but confused about how it works.
My script extracts files from fls file generated from latex with
-recorder option and scrapes the blg file for bibliography databases.
It finds the path with kpsewhich . Since the document buildsm bibtex
is finding the mjm_tr file and it can be found with -muse-exist but NOT
-path even though the BIBINPUTS contains the path. What is wrong here?
Thanks. 


kpsewhich -path="$BIBINPUTS" mjm_tr.bib
marchywka at happy:/home/documents/latex/proj/potuse$ echo $BIBINPUTS
{{}/home/documents/latex/share/overrides/}//:{{}.}//:{{}/home/documents/latex/bib/}//:.:{{}/home/marchywka/.texlive2019/texmf-config,/home/marchywka/.texlive2019/texmf-var,/home/marchywka/texmf,!!/usr/local/share/texmf,/etc/texmf,!!/var/lib/texmf,!!/usr/share/texmf,!!/usr/share/texlive/texmf-dist}/bibtex/bib//:{{}/home/documents/latex/share/includes/}//:{{}/home/documents/latex/share/content/}//:{{}/home/documents/latex/pkg/}//
marchywka at happy:/home/documents/latex/proj/potuse$ kpsewhich -must-exist mjm_tr.bib
/home/documents/latex/bib/mjm_tr.bib




 Mike Marchywka 
44 Crosscreek Trail
Jasper GA 30143
was 306 Charles Cox Drive  Canton, GA 30115
470-758-0799
404-788-1216