Democrats in the Monroe County Legislature have drafted a plan to change the way county government operates, and they'll use it as their platform in this fall's election campaign.

They unveiled the plan, which they're calling "We the People... A Citizen's Guide to Taking Back Monroe County," last week. Many of the recommendations focus on what the Democrats see as a Republican penchant for control and secrecy. The Democrats also want to reduce the size of the County Legislature.

It's an important election year for Democrats. Fourteen County Legislature seats will be on the ballot, and the Democrats, who now have 12 seats in the 29-member legislature, need to pick up only three more to gain control.

At the press conference announcing their plan, caucus leaders headed off what they said was inevitable criticism of the proposals as a political move. They agreed with that very notion.

"In a sense, this is a political document," said Minority Leader Carla Palumbo. "This is our platform."

Republican Majority Leader Bill Smith criticized the proposal, saying it was "old, recycled ideas." It also fails to address the Albany mandates that contribute to the county's fiscal problems, he said. "It contains not one thing that addresses our central problem," Smith said.

The Democrats' plan includes two major reform ideas. One is to establish a blue-ribbon commission to assess the function and size of the County Legislature - specifically, reducing its size. They also want an independent, non-partisan commission to redraw the lines of legislative districts. Impartial redistricting, Democrats say, would decrease the influence of the majority party.

Taken together, those two proposals could alter both the size and makeup of legislative districts. And the county could see more "blended" districts, with individual legislators serving both city and suburban areas. Currently, only four of the 29 legislators serve both city and suburban areas. Others serve districts that are either entirely in the city or entirely in the suburbs.

The Democrats say larger districts would mean a better regional focus. The city and suburban districts may have different needs, but often what's good for the city is good for the county and vice versa, says Legislator Harry Bronson, whose district covers parts of the city, Henrietta, and Brighton.

"The larger the legislative district, the less likely you're going to be tied to parochial interests," says Legislator Ted O'Brien.

But Smith offered a counterview, saying that larger districts would distance legislators from their constituents. It could also reduce accountability, he said.

Monroe wouldn't be unique in reducing the size of its legislature. In 2004, the size of the Dutchess County Legislature was reduced to 25 seats from 35. Closer to home, the size of the Erie County Legislature has been reduced three times since its creation, and since 1981, its membership has dropped from 20 seats to 15. Erie County's population is about 921,000, and each legislator represents about 62,000 residents.

Monroe County, with a population of just under 731,000, has 29 legislators, representing about 25,000 residents each.

The legislature in its current form dilutes the influence of individual representatives, says O'Brien.

There's another benefit to reducing the legislature's size, Democrats say. Each legislator is paid a base salary of $18,000 a year. Thinning their ranks would save some money.

Some of the Democrats' proposals aren't new. They want to abolish the Monroe County Water Authority and have the county take over its operations. That proposal has already been considered by a County Legislature committee and was referred to the administration so it can research its feasibility and benefits.

The Democrats also want changes in local development corporations, such COMIDA (the county's Industrial Development Agency) and the Main and Clinton Local Development Corporation, the agency in charge of Renaissance Square. They want the agencies to be subject to freedom-of-information, open-meetings, and public-bidding laws. They also want the agencies' budgets and bonding to be subject to approval by the County Legislature. And they want both the Democrats and the Republicans in the County Legislature to appoint representatives to the boards.

They want COMIDA to conduct job-creation audits. They also want companies that fail to meet job-creation requirements to pay back their tax benefits. COMIDA has long been a target of Democrats, who say the agency has provided benefits for projects that don't generate enough economic impact and enough jobs with good wages.

Other proposals include:

• Prohibiting elected officials from appearing in publicly-funded advertising, a move similar to an executive order issued by Governor Eliot Spitzer at the start of his term.
• Televising and webcasting sessions of the legislature
• Requiring more advance notice about the consideration of "matters of urgency," last-minute proposals that are added to the legislature's agenda.
• Changing the county executive's budget deadline back to October. Democrats argue that the new post-election deadline acts as a political shield for the administration in election years.
• Placing a $50,000 cap on leases the county executive can enter into without the legislature's approval.

Nothing will change unless the County Legislature passes some of the Democrats' plan. Caucus members acknowledge that their proposals may not make it very far. In the past two years, Democrats' proposals have been voted down repeatedly, most of them dying in committee.

Democrats say they'll take their plan to the public as they campaign door-to-door and appear at public events.