Gov. Linda Lingle publicly asked lawmakers yesterday to compromise on a few bills on her potential veto list, but legislative leaders said they intend to stick with their own plans for a one-day special override session on Tuesday.

If there are technical problems with any of the bills on the veto list, leaders said, they can be repaired next session.

In an open letter to Senate President Colleen Hanabusa and House Speaker Calvin Say, Lingle asked for what she called "technical" changes to at least four bills so she can sign them into law.

The bills cited in the governor's letter include a move to buy prime agricultural land in Kunia and 'Ewa, put crosswalk timers at certain intersections, build a traffic control center on Maui and provide money for a Creative Media Academy and MELE programs through the state university system.

"All these that we picked, we think are important, and we think they're easy to fix. We don't think there's a big philosophical difference," Lingle said at a news conference yesterday.

Another 29 bills are on the list of bills Lingle has said she may veto by July 10. Only a handful seem to lack the necessary votes in the Legislature for an override.

Hanabusa characterized the requested changes as more a matter of preference than technical changes necessary for the laws to be enacted.

"Simply because the governor may not like it doesn't mean it's wrong," Hanabusa said. "It also means the Legislature feels the way they do, and if she disagrees, that's why she has the ability to veto and we have the ability to override."

Said House Speaker Say:

"I would like to override."

Hanabusa noted that the governor also has the ability to withhold funding, which could be a factor in all of the bills, regardless of whether the Legislature decides to enact them over Lingle's objections.

The only bill that may have potential constitutional problems is one that requires the University of Hawai'i to lease land for a Creative Media Center from Hawai'i Public Broadcasting, which the attorney general says could violate the law regarding the university's autonomy.

Hanabusa and Say said the request for changes has come too late in the process. They also questioned why the request came in the unusual format of an open letter, when Lingle or her staff could have picked up a phone to try to work out the differences.

According to Say, a one-day special session costs $5,000. Making changes to bills would require an extended session due to a 48-hour notice requirement, increasing the cost, he said.

Rather than rush to make changes now, Say said, it would be better to override the vetoes, put the laws on the books and address any problems when the Legislature reconvenes in five months.

For bills with fiscal implications, that could mean a year delay in getting them funded.

According to Lingle, the bill to acquire the agricultural land presents a problem because the Legislature appropriated the buyer's advertised asking price and Lingle believes that it would be better to use the powers of eminent domain to get the land for a fair market price.

Hanabusa said this wasn't a mistake but rather a deliberate policy decision aimed at preserving agricultural land.

Similarly, the Legislature deliberately selected the highway fund to pay for crosswalk counters and a Maui traffic control center, Hanabusa said.

Lingle said she asked lawmakers to take the money from the general fund instead.

Reach Treena Shapiro at tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.