COURTESY OF KITV
Gov.-elect Linda Lingle and Gov. Ben Cayetano embraced yesterday after heading into a meeting to discuss the future of the state. They met for about 90 minutes in Cayetano's office.
Cayetano gives Lingle With smiles, a hug and a polite kiss, Gov. Ben Cayetano and Gov.-elect Linda Lingle started the historic change in power in Hawaii yesterday afternoon.
prison decision
The governor-elect says she will retain
the state comptroller for a timeBy Richard Borreca
rborreca@starbulletin.comRepublican Lingle and Democrat Cayetano met for about 90 minutes in Cayetano's office. With them were their executive assistants, Sam Callejo for Cayetano and Bob Awana for Lingle.
After the meeting, Cayetano said that he was leaving the issue of building a new state prison to the Lingle administration. Cayetano had hoped to sign a deal with a private developer before he leaves office Monday, but the governor said yesterday he was unable to conclude negotiations.
"I told Gov. Lingle I am handing it off to her. I gave her our perspective on this, and in the end it will be up to the new administration," Cayetano said.
Two weeks ago, Lingle had asked Cayetano to halt negotiations with private prison developers because she wanted to consider a range of options, but Cayetano had refused. Yesterday, however, he acknowledged that he could not reach agreement.
Because of an unexpected $7 million to $8 million needed for the Halawa prison complex sewage system, Cayetano said he could not reach a deal with the undisclosed private developers.
Lingle, meanwhile, said her administration will be filled with almost all new faces, although she expects that the state comptroller will have to stay on in a temporary position to sign checks for usual state business.
"Outside of that, we haven't asked anyone to stay on," Lingle said.
She explained that the 16 Cabinet officers appointed by Cayetano will leave the state government after Monday. Until replacements can be found, Lingle said senior civil servants will function as administration directors and deputy directors.
"I think it is easier, if you are going to change, that you change at the earliest possible moment," Lingle said.
Cayetano promised that he would do what he could to restore funding in the new state budget to positions in the governor's office that had been unfunded.
To save money last session, the Legislature cut the pay to six from 60 positions in the governor's office and deleted funding for all deputy directors.
Lingle joked that when she and Cayetano discussed the difficult subject of pay raises for state employees, she would move collective bargaining along by using "him as a secret weapon." Cayetano was governor during unprecedented simultaneous strikes by public school teachers and university faculty in 2001.
Cayetano and Lingle said they spent time talking about the importance and power of the office and how it is handled.
"We had a very good discussion about the issues that will be facing the new administration. It was a very positive discussion," Cayetano said.
"He was candid about trying to help me -- in the spirit of understanding what I will be facing in the next eight years," Lingle said. "He just wanted me to understand the power of the office, the ability of the office to help people, the impact your decisions have.
"They are very great and sweeping and to always keep in mind, it is not just some decision, it is going to affect lots of people," Lingle said.
She just returned from a week of meetings with the National and Republican governors associations. Lingle said she came away from the national meetings with a renewed sense of the importance for state security and to be prepared for natural disasters and national emergencies.
"It was stressed that the governors play an important role in emergency management and to be up and running and prepared for it," Lingle said.
On another subject, Lingle said she hopes to move into the new governor's residence by the middle of December. The house, which was funded with private donations, will take the place of Washington Place, which will be turned into a museum.
Lingle said she had reservations about the new house, which is on the same property, but after taking a tour she appreciated the details worked out by first lady Vicky Cayetano.
"I was concerned about the house, how big it would be, how ostentatious, but it was very well done, very tastefully done," Lingle said.
She joked that the house has room for her two cats, which at the moment are not getting along with each other.
"There is an area where I can segregate my cats upstairs, segregate them from the downstairs, but also they aren't getting along," she said.
State of Hawaii
