Unionized state employees should not expect serious contract talks for at least a year as Hawai'i deals with a projected revenue deficit of $162.3 million for this fiscal year, Gov. Linda Lingle said today.

Lingle met with the leaders of all four public employee unions — the Hawai'i Government Employees Association, United Public Workers, Hawai'i State Teachers Association and University of Hawai'i Professional Assembly — and "we talked about delaying any discussion of cost increases for the next year," she said. "And while we didn't agree on anything, we had very fruitful meetings."

Asked whether state employees should expect little or no pay raises, Lingle said, "I do think it's realistic to hope for that."

She also said, "It's too early to talk about whether there will be layoffs or not. Our goal is that we don't have any layoffs."

"We just need to get though this year, let things settle out," Lingle said. "I told them I don't want to waste my time and I don't want to waste your time when I know what the financial situation is.

"Instead of us all wasting our time, why don't we just see how the economy progresses over the next year? If the Council on Revenues comes in in six months or nine months and wildly increases their projections, then let's look at it that time. But I don't think that's going to happen. I think it's going to be a year before things just settle out."

Lingle today also delayed sale of more than $600 million worth of state bonds, citing uncertainty in the financial markets.

"We're fortunate that we're in a position we don't need that money today," Lingle said during a news conference. "And so we're going to wait and see how the markets react over the next couple of weeks as the federal government puts forward a plan to get financial markets back on track."

If the state had followed through with the sale Tuesday, it would have had to pay 1 percent more interest than necessary, she said.

Lingle also announced she will leave Thursday for New York, where she will meet Monday with officials of Citigroup Inc., which underwrites the state bonds.

The bond sale will be for $300 million of new money, $300 million for refunding and $26 million to complete the acquisition of Kukui Gardens, a housing project near downtown Honolulu. That transaction will result in the preservation of 857 affordable rental units that were at risk of being converted to more expensive rental units.

Following Monday's meeting, the governor said she will campaign for Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain in six states: Michigan, Ohio, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts and Missouri. She will also be at the vice presidential debate Oct. 2 in St. Louis, Mo., in support of McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

McCain would be a better leader for the nation, Lingle said.

He would also be better for Hawaii, because Hawaii-born Democratic Sen. Barack Obama's tax plan would hurt more than 20,000 small businesses in the islands, she said.

Lingle also spoke with reporters about the state's budget crunch brought about by a drop in tax revenues.

She said she met last week with representatives of all four public employee labor unions about her idea that they should agree not to seek pay raises for their members as the state faces a nearly $1 billion budget shortfall over the next three years.

"And while we didn't agree on anything, they were very fruitful meetings, with the unions expressing a clear understanding of what our financial situation is, wanting to be a part of the solution," Lingle said.

When asked about the possibility that it might be necessary to cut government workers, Lingle said it was too early to talk about layoffs, which she said would be an "absolute last resort."