"I feel they probably can figure out a way to make it safe (but) it will be very costly," she said. "But I don't want any hotter waste than we now accept, and I'm going to stand by it."

Walker said her biggest challenge will be the state budget and meeting state needs during a continued economic downturn. State employees haven't had a raise in three years, state health insurance programs for poor children are struggling and Walker still wants to beef up spending on education. And she said Thursday she will not propose any new tax increases.

"I realize this is an election year, and it's always tough to get tax increases in an election year," she said. "We'll have to look at all alternatives, so I won't guarantee there won't be some fee increases. . . . I will look at every resource that's available to us."

Unlike previous years where she worked with Leavitt to develop a budget, this year the hard choices will be hers to make and the "buck stops" with her. "It is a different feel when you realize the final decision is here."

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