The board of the state Hawai'i Tourism Authority yesterday unanimously approved the selection of former state Sen. Mike McCartney as the agency's president and chief executive officer.

McCartney, 49, now serves as the executive director of the Hawai'i State Teachers Association. He is scheduled to start April 6.

McCartney joins the agency at a critical time as the state's No. 1 industry faces a continuing slump in visitor arrivals that is expected to continue at least until mid-year.

The announcement was made yesterday during a special board meeting at the Hawai'i Convention Center.

Although much of his experience is in state politics, McCartney served two years as chair of the Hawai'i Tourism Authority. He also is the former president and CEO of PBS Hawai'i, former director of the Hawai'i state Department of Human Resource Development, and served as a state senator for 10 years.

McCartney said he looks forward to the challenges but wasn't ready to get specific about immediate goals.

"These are very difficult times for Hawai'i and our visitor industry," McCartney said. "We all are in the same canoe. We have a limited amount of resources."

It took 13 minutes from the start of the meeting until McCartney's approval. The quick meeting contrasted with the five months it took to name a replacement for former HTA president Rex Johnson, who resigned under pressure in October.

The board paid a Mainland search firm $90,000 to nominate finalists. Board member Douglas Kahikina Chang served on the selection committee.

He said the search narrowed 200 people who were interested to 75 resumes to a shorter list of 35 to seven semifinalists. Chang said five were interviewed, then the two finalists were interviewed again.

Chang said that McCartney "clearly brought the experience, the talent and the passion" for the job that the board was seeking.

Sources have identified the other finalist as Paul Casey, former Hawaiian Airlines and visitor industry executive.

Born and raised in Hawai'i, McCartney is a graduate of Castle High School and received his B.S. from Pacific University in Oregon.

"The board is highly confident that Mike McCartney is the right person for the position," said HTA chairman Kelvin Bloom.

"During the search process, we looked for an individual who would be able to provide strong leadership and guidance to the organization, build exemplary relationships with the community, the tourism industry and government, and ensure that the goals of the authority are implemented in an effective manner," Bloom said.

"We are certain that Mike will accomplish this and help lead the tourism industry to a more prosperous future," Bloom said.

Johnson was paid $240,000 in the job, which was reduced by $40,000 after he drew criticism last year when the state auditor determined he had forwarded e-mails from his state computer that contained jokes with X-rated, sexist or racist content. Bloom said McCartney's salary will be comparable to his predecessor.

McCartney will replace Lloyd Unebasami, HTA's chief administrative officer, who has served as interim president and CEO.

The Hawai'i Tourism Authority was created in 1998 to nurture a successful visitor industry.