HILO, Hawaii -- Hawaii County Council terms would be increased to four years under a proposal unanimously advanced by the Charter Commission on Friday.

Currently, the nine County Council members are allowed four two-year terms. The new proposal changes that to two four-year terms. The council terms would not be staggered, because of concerns that two council members could find themselves in the same district during reapportionment.

Alapaki Nahale-a, who chaired an ad-hoc committee on the issue, said two years simply isn't enough time for council members to get up to speed. With two-year terms, the council member has little time in office before he or she is out campaigning again, he said.

"The council members need more time to see pools built and roads on the ground," Nahale-a said. "It takes some time to learn the job."

Nahale-a said the longer terms will be balanced by another ballot amendment that will make it easier for the public to file recall petitions. Currently, petitions need to be gathered from 25 percent of all registered voters. The new plan is to require petitions from 25 percent of the number who voted in the last election.

The commission also hopes the longer terms will attract high-quality candidates who want to serve the public, but don't relish the concept of sign-waving and ticket-selling every two years.

Some members of the public embraced the longer terms.

"I support four-year council terms so members have time to learn the complexities of government, but only if there are strong recall and impeachment options," said Cory Harden, of Hilo.

Others were not so supportive.

"We passed the two-year terms for a very good reason, to dispel the perception and the reality of corruption" said Puna resident Joyce Folena.

And some weren't sure.

"My gut feeling is two years is too short," said Tim Rees, also of Hilo. "Three years is perfect. Four years is too long."

Nahale-a noted that the City and County of Honolulu has four-year council terms as does one of the other four Hawaii counties.

The commission, which began meeting in March, has a self-imposed deadline of Oct. 31 to draft potential amendments. The all-volunteer commission meets every 10 years to craft changes to the county's fundamental governing document.

The board plans to hold public hearings on the amendments and take a report listing all the proposed amendments to the County Council for comments. The council cannot vote to exclude any proposed amendments, though council members can propose their own alternative amendments.

Amendments that pass muster will be on the 2010 ballot.

The commission put 16 amendments on the 2000 ballot and all passed. So far this year, there are 11 amendments that have survived the first step of the process and now proceed to second reading.