Charter Panel Adopts Key Points : Government: Draft will call for supervisor term limits and increases chief executive officer’s powers. But some residents protest it doesn’t go far enough.

A group charged with creating a county charter inched closer Thursday toward adopting a series of bylaws aimed at making government more efficient and accountable to the public.

The commission spent Thursday night debating and approving key aspects of the charter, amid protests from some residents who felt the document doesn’t go far enough in reforming government and encouraging privatization.

The commission will spend the next few days finalizing the language of the draft charter before submitting it to the Board of Supervisors, which could amend the plan before deciding whether to place it on the ballot sometime next year.

Bruce Sumner, a retired judge who chairs the commission, said he was “delighted” with the proposed charter. “Anyone who looks at this must admit it’s an improvement over what we have now.”

Supervisors formed the Charter Commission shortly after the county’s Dec. 6 bankruptcy, which was precipitated by the loss of $1.7 billion in its investment pool. The commission was directed to examine ways to reform county government by creating a set of laws known as a charter. Orange County currently is governed by general state laws.

Over the last few weeks, the panel has tentatively approved a variety of bylaws including:

* Limiting supervisors to two four-year terms.

* Converting some top county jobs, such as auditor-controller and treasurer-tax collector, from elective to appointive posts. The change is intended to attract the most qualified candidates, officials said.

* Requiring quarterly financial reports on the state of the county’s investment pool.

* Giving the chief executive officer the power to hire and fire top officials and award contracts.

The commission also rejected a proposal to change the year that the sheriff, district attorney and assessor are elected so it doesn’t coincide with state elections. The goal of the proposal was to allow county officeholders to run for state office without giving up their jobs.

But a few residents who attended Thursday’s meeting complained that the commission hasn’t gone far enough in its reforms.

Anti-tax activist Bill Ward, for example, complained that the commission was “railroading through” a charter that would benefit big businesses and developers.

Earlier this week, former County Chief Executive Officer William J. Popejoy also said he was disappointed with the work of the commission.

Popejoy said the panel should have moved to make the post of supervisor a part-time job and focus more power in the hands of a chief executive officer.