State Rep. Tommy Waters, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee who has been in the middle of fiery debates over medical-malpractice liability reform and civil unions the past two sessions, will not run for re-election this year.

Waters, D-51st (Lanikai, Waimanalo), said the birth of his second child caused him and his wife to look at the balance between family, work and politics.

"As rewarding as the experience has been for the past six years, it has kept me from doing justice to the most important persons in my life at this time, our children, Emma Iliahi and Thomas 'Kai,' " Waters wrote in a letter he plans to send to supporters.

"It became painfully clear to Emily and me this past legislative session that the children were growing so quickly and the time I have not spent with them because of my dedication to the office I held would be time lost forever — time that could not be 'made up' later. We found that this loss was too important to continue and therefore the decision was made not to run for re-election."

Waters, a defense attorney first elected in 2002, was expected to be a target for Republicans this year but the state GOP has not yet recruited a candidate. The open seat will now likely attract several candidates from both parties in a district that has been politically competitive in the past.

State Rep. Blake Oshiro, D-33rd ('Aiea, Halawa Valley, 'Aiea Heights), the vice chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, would be in line to replace Waters as the leader of the influential committee, although that will depend on internal leadership movement after the November elections.

Politicians often cite family reasons for leaving office, but people close to Waters say he is being genuine. He is an effective campaigner and, while he would have likely faced Republican pressure if he ran for re-election, his colleagues doubt that was his motivation for stepping aside.

"I have a feeling of sadness that he's leaving," said state House Majority Leader Kirk Caldwell, D-24th (Manoa). "He's brought a certain passion and compassion to the job that other legislators don't have. And he has a sense of humor that is pretty refined."

Waters said he is proud of being able to get improvements to the aging Waimanalo Wastewater Treatment plant, money for renovations at elementary schools and the Waimanalo Health Center, and a halau and commercial kitchen for Hawaiian homesteaders.

Privately, several of his colleagues questioned whether House leaders did enough to protect Waters as Judiciary chairman, a post that is a magnet for criticism.

Waters disappointed many gay activists and others within his party when he deferred a civil unions bill last year after it became clear the bill would fail in committee. He was savaged on talk radio and on newspaper editorial pages after the committee rejected a malpractice liability reform bill last year and declined to hear it again this session.

House and Senate leadership had agreed not to move the malpractice reform bill, but Waters was the primary target of Republicans and the Hawai'i Medical Association. State Rep. Josh Green, D-6th (N. Kona, Keauhou, Kailua-Kona), a Big Island doctor who fought with Waters over the issue, has acknowledged that Waters was unfairly depicted as the sole obstacle.

Willes Lee, the state's GOP chairman, said the party is talking to several Republicans about a House District 51 campaign. He said Republican complaints about Waters were not simply because of his opposition to malpractice reform, but what he described as his "cavalier attitude."

At one point last session, Waters asked for a moment of silence on the House floor to mark the death of malpractice reform, a remark he later regretted and said was made in frustration.

"I'd say that's the best health news for the people of Hawai'i that we've heard for a long time," Lee said of Waters' decision not to run again.