Summary of the State of the State Address

In her sixth annual address, delivered to lawmakers Jan. 22, Gov. Linda Lingle (R) asked the Democratic-controlled Legislature to approve the purchase of an embattled, 850-acre resort. Turtle Bay resort on Oahu’s North Shore has met stiff opposition to expansion plans that local residents say will spoil the rural nature of their community. State ownership of the property would preserve the Hawaiian way of life, she said.

She also sought investment in education programs she said are needed to transform the state’s economy from one “based too narrowly on land development to one based on the infinite talent and intellectual capacity” of Hawaii’s people. Lingle proposed new public school courses to prepare young people for jobs in animation, digital media, game development and writing and publishing.

The popular governor also asked lawmakers to help Hawaii — the most oil-dependent state in the country — develop alternative energy sources. She proposed a new government entity to encourage new business ventures “from wind to solar, from wave and ocean thermal to biofuel, from algae to even energy from space!”