honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted at 12:16 p.m., Wednesday, January 15, 2003

Lingle's cabinet almost finalized

By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

Gov. Linda Lingle's new cabinet is nearly filled after the appointments today of Kathleen Watanabe as director of the state Department of Human Resources Development and James Propotnick as interim head of the Department of Public Safety.

Only one opening remains ­ head of the Department of Taxation. But today Lingle named a deputy tax director, Kurt Kawafuchi.

Yesterday, Lingle named Maui drug court coordinator Lillian Koller as director of the state Department of Human Services, and Hawai'i County deputy managing director and business owner Peter Young as head of the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Lingle's director nominations require confirmation from the state Senate. Each position pays a salary of $85,302.

Watanabe is the personnel program administrator for the Human Resources department. That job entails overseeing labor relations issues, negotiation of collective bargaining agreements, employee relations, benefits, training and safety.

Previously, she was supervising deputy attorney general in the Employment Law Division, and was an attorney for Kaua'i County and a per diem Circuit Court judge on Kaua'i.

Kawafuchi supervises the tax division for the Department of the Attorney General. His duties include managing the Tobacco Enforcement Unit.

Before that, he was a tax attorney for the firm Goodsill Anderson Quinn and Stifel.

"Kurt brings a wealth of experience in all levels of taxation," Lingle said. "It's clear by his background this is an area that Kurt truly excels in and is committed to."

Koller, a 47-year-old attorney, was born in Toronto, Ontario, and is a naturalized U.S. citizen. She developed and managed the Maui Drug Court program, which offers treatment as an alternative to incarceration for nonviolent drug offenders. She was also a Maui deputy corporation counsel when Lingle was mayor of the county.

Koller said her experience managing the drug court program has given her a background developing a network of social service providers.

"We must find effective ways to help those in need get back on their feet and stay there," Koller said. "We need to help them rebuild their lives, restore their self-esteem and dignity, improve their quality of life and expand their capacity for self-sufficiency. This department is really about developing human potential."

Young, 50, is the owner of two Big Island businesses but is not involved in the management or operations of them. Since 1982 he has owned Real Estate Services, an appraisal, land use, planning, project management and feasibility consulting company. He has also owned Hawai'i Wine Connection ­ The Wine Collection, since 1994.

"We need to improve and expand on the quality of life for the people of Hawai'i, and a lot of what the department does touches on that," Young said. "Fresh water, clean ocean, open space, green forests and mountains are the types of things that make life fun and interesting. It's why we are here and why we stay here."

As for state parks, Young said the state could arrange for communities to help maintain the parks in a "friends of the park" partnership and that if necessary, user fees could be another way to maintain the parks.