GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Amy Agbayani offered her message yesterday as she sat and listened to testimony presented to the Senate Ways and Means Committee regarding the negative effects of one of Gov. Linda Lingle's budget vetoes.
Dems set to
reverse gov’s vetoesOne possible override would
restore funding to social services
The state Legislature's Democratic leaders are preparing to say "no" to Republican Gov. Linda Lingle.
In separate meetings yesterday, the House and Senate started lining up reasons to convene a special session and override at least two, and as many as four, of Lingle's 50 vetoes.
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One possible override would restore nearly $4 million in state funding that private social service agencies lost upon Lingle's veto. Lawmakers may also take up a vetoed bill to protect agriculture land from piecemeal rezoning, and two bills to expand and clarify the legislative auditor's powers.
The movement toward a special session came yesterday from a private meeting of 32 House Democrats who, according to Speaker Calvin Say, are willing to override a number of Lingle vetoes.
Also, the Senate held a lengthy hearing to listen to social workers and community program directors who wanted their funds restored. State Auditor Marion Higa also spoke against Lingle's veto of a bill giving Higa's office authority to conduct financial audits of state departments and then bill the department for the cost.
"I had to count the votes, and today I had resounding support from the caucus," Say (D, Palolo-Kaimuki) said. "They are all excited and most supportive for an override."
There is still some last-minute vote counting under way in the House because Say still has not heard from four House Democrats who were out of state. He needs at least 34 votes to overturn Lingle.
According to the state Constitution, the Legislature will have to meet next Tuesday before noon for the purpose of overriding a veto. It takes a two-thirds majority to override a veto.
The first and only time that the state Legislature overrode a veto was in 2001, when Republicans led a move to override former Gov. Ben Cayetano's veto of a bill to raise the age of sexual consent.
Lingle, who will be on a tourism promotion trip to Japan next week when the Legislature comes back for the expected one-day special session, said the Democratic lawmakers cannot change the state's shaky financial condition.
"It would be easy to say, 'Give everyone more money.' I wish I could give them twice as much as they ask, but there is no more money," Lingle said about the social service cuts.
Lingle is still likely to have the last say on new laws that require spending state money, because she has the power to restrict state expenditures, even if the Legislature overrides her veto.
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Legislators, lobbyists and members of the public lined the corridors outside as testimony was being taken.
In the Senate, lawmakers heard from agencies ranging from Kahuku Hospital to the Kalihi YMCA about the effect of Lingle's veto of Senate Bill 1305, which would have funded the private social service agencies.
"Cutting these funds will not only affect individual agencies, but the entire system from youth services, health care, domestic violence to legal services," said the Rev. Frank Chong, spokesman for the Alliance for Health and Human Services.
Lingle said the state's financial condition is still not secure enough to increase funding. She noted that as the fiscal year ended yesterday, she was forced to delay some state payments and purchases until the beginning of the new financial year.
"Fiscal discipline means not spending money you don't have," Lingle said. "It means living within your means and don't buy something you can't afford."
Senate President Robert Bunda (D, Wahiawa-Haleiwa), however, argued that the state does have money for the cut social service programs.
"In these down economic times, it is justified to use those funds," Bunda said.
