Several state senators said last night they want more specific operating conditions on Hawaii Superferry in return for letting it resume service but gave only even chances that they have enough votes.

"It's 50-50. We need to hammer out a draft," Sen. Brian Taniguchi, chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee, said after nearly eight hours of public testimony on the bill. Taniguchi, D-10th (Manoa, McCully), said he hopes to have a committee vote by this afternoon.

Sen. Ron Menor, D-17th (Mililani, Waipi'o), chairman of the Senate Energy and Environment Committee, has suggested several conditions to protect whales, prevent the spread of invasive species and preserve cultural and natural resources.

But House leaders are holding out against amendments.

John Garibaldi, the Superferry's president and chief executive, did not rule out additional conditions and agreed to try to provide the Senate with feedback on what might be feasible. But he said suggestions such as significantly slowing ferry speeds would be a dealbreaker.

Garibaldi told senators Superferry is committed to executing its extensive policies on whale avoidance, invasive species and traffic, and could be operating within 10 days of the Legislature passing a bill.

But Garibaldi, as he has said for weeks, said Superferry will likely have to leave the Islands if it is prevented from operating during the one to two years it will take the state to complete an environmental review. "Really, this is the last avenue we have to pursue," he told reporters during an afternoon break in the hearing.

Senators, who questioned Garibaldi for more than an hour, tried to pin him down about whether the project's investors knew of the risks of proceeding without an environmental review while legal challenges were still pending in the courts. Senators also asked him whether he thinks Superferry has made mistakes or whether he regrets not working with the Senate on a proposed compromise last session.

"Looking back, do you think that some mistakes were made?" asked state Sen. J. Kalani English, D-6th (E. Maui, Moloka'i, Lana'i), chairman of the Senate Transportation and International Affairs Committee.

"Well, I think that anything that anyone does you can always do things better," Garibaldi replied. "We've learned very, very significant lessons in the last six years that this project has been under way."

LIABILITY SHIELD

Superferry executives and state Attorney General Mark Bennett also are asking senators to amend a section of the bill that would protect the state from liability from lawsuits by Superferry because of delays in service. Superferry has agreed not to sue for any past actions by the state but does not want to give up on all future claims.

"It causes significant problems," Tig Krekel, the vice chairman of J.F. Lehman & Co., the project's main investor, told reporters after the hearing.

Menor is suggesting that Superferry apply for an incidental-take permit from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that could set operating conditions but give Superferry some liability protection in the event of whale strikes. No other vessel in Hawai'i has such a permit. Until the ferry gets the permit, he said, Superferry should have to lower speeds to 13 knots in the humpback sanctuary after the first severe strike of a whale. After a second strike, he said, the ferry should return passengers and vehicles to their home islands and then suspend operations until it obtains a permit.

He also suggests vehicle inspections to prevent people from hoarding natural resources and that Superferry create a way to wash the undercarriage of all vehicles onboard within three months of resuming service to deter the spread of invasive species.

Menor also wants to change the composition of an oversight task force to include federal environmental officials and local environmental groups while removing a Superferry executive.

Senators such as Taniguchi and Menor are under pressure to offer amendments after telling residents at three Neighbor Island informational briefings that the draft bill was only a starting point. Menor said his conditions are based in part on the 29 recommendations by Maui environmentalists last week.

"This committee is looking seriously at those conditions," Menor told Garibaldi at the hearing.

House leaders do not want amendments and, privately, some senators said it is unclear whether there is enough support to convince Senate leaders to force the issue with the House.

Senate Minority Leader Fred Hemmings, R-25th (Kailua, Waimanalo, Hawai'i Kai), described many of the amendments as "poison pills" intended to undermine the bill.

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.