New tensions have developed between University of Hawai'i interim President David McClain and two state lawmakers responsible for overseeing the university over whether the Legislature is micromanaging the university's affairs.

UH has long wanted more autonomy over its internal operations and administrators and state lawmakers have often disagreed on the line between reasonable oversight and interference into the university's roughly $315 million general fund budget.

But the intensity seemed to increase last week as McClain was preparing to appear at a briefing Thursday before state Sen. Clayton Hee, D-23rd (Kane'ohe, Kahuku), and state Rep. Tommy Waters, D-51st (Waimanalo, Lanikai), the chairmen of the higher education committees.

McClain had suggested lawmakers' interference could threaten the university's accreditation, while Hee wanted to know why the university had not filled numerous vacant jobs.

Although the briefing was about the university's supplemental budget request for the next session — $35 million in operating money and $326 million for capital improvements — the sour feelings were triggered by behind-the-scenes questions from Hee and Waters about one position on the UH-Manoa campus.

At a private meeting last Monday in Waters' House office between McClain, Hee, Waters and staff, McClain was asked whether he planned to follow the Legislature's order last session to transfer a position for an assistant professor of Hawaiian studies in the College of Education from UH-Manoa to the West O'ahu campus. McClain said the chancellors of the two campuses opposed the transfer and that he would not authorize the move.

After the meeting, McClain said he received a "crescendo" of additional data requests from legislative staff ahead of the Thursday briefing. Meanwhile, Garrett Toguchi, Hee's chief of staff, sent an e-mail to Ralph Wolff at the Western Association of Schools and Colleges asking if the Legislature's insertion of budget items could jeopardize the university's accreditation.

In an e-mail response, Wolff, the accrediting group's executive director wrote that the group has been concerned about "problematic line item budgeting inserted to support specific individuals or programs that are not part of the university's plans or priorities, and are not with them."

"Particularly problematic are legislatively mandated personnel actions, which is a function of the university's management. That is what we understand the autonomy legislation attempted to prevent," Wolff wrote.

The exchange between Toguchi and Wolff was forwarded to McClain. More e-mails followed and were forwarded to others close to the university. Some of the e-mails were obtained by The Advertiser.

The e-mails show McClain thought he was being hassled. In his prepared testimony for the Thursday briefing, which he never read in its entirety, McClain made reference to the Monday meeting with Hee and Waters over the transfer of the position and included a quote from accreditors that micromanagement "raises a real question about the university's ability to maintain academic and operational integrity."

In an interview Saturday, McClain said he recognizes lawmakers have a legitimate oversight function and that he wants to work with the Legislature on the university's budget. But he also said he has authority over management issues at UH.

Asked whether he felt harassed by last week's events, McClain said: "I certainly felt burdened."

Hee said Friday he wanted to know the status of how the university was using its existing budget before considering the supplemental request. In particular, he was concerned about the number of vacant positions and whether administrators were following the Legislature's intent. But he also said he wanted to ask McClain specifically about the one UH-Manoa position because the transfer had gone through the legislative process, was approved by the governor, and was not completed by the university.

Hee said he did not think it was micromanagement or that he or Waters pressured McClain. "They're entitled to their opinion, but that's the nature of what we do," Hee said.

Waters said he believes moving the Hawaiian studies position from UH-Manoa to West O'ahu would help the College of Education recruit new teaching candidates from the Leeward Coast. Leeward public schools have had a perennial problem retaining teachers and are often assigned young teachers with little experience or local familiarity.

"We just wanted to find out from the president what was happening," Waters said. "We don't need a permission slip to take care of our kids and take care of our system."

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.