The Baltimore County Council approved a proposal last night to change how its election districts are redrawn after the census, a proposal that will appear on November's ballot for voter approval.

The plan follows almost exactly the conclusions of a commission the council established this spring to study how other counties redraw districts.

If enacted, it would direct the council to establish an advisory group after every census to hold public hearings and devise an initial map. The council would then gather additional public input and approve the final changes.

The only difference between the commission's plan and the council's plan is in the composition of the advisory group. The commission suggested allowing the county executive to nominate one of the members, but the council decided it should name all five.

The referendum would not affect the shape of the districts the council drew last summer but would change how the council redraws the maps after subsequent censuses, starting with the one in 2010.

Meanwhile, a group led by Republican Dels. A. Wade Kach and James F. Ports Jr. is promoting an alternative plan for redistricting changes developed in a series of public meetings during the fall and winter.

Their proposal would also create a body to take public input and draw the maps, but it differs in various details. Most notably, the council would not be allowed to change the maps drawn by the advisory group.

Ports said yesterday that they have collected about 2,000 of the 10,000 signatures they need to get their measure on the November ballot. The deadline for the petition is Aug. 12.

"We've got a long way to go in a short amount of time, no doubt," Ports said. "Will we make it? I don't know, but we're out there trying."

The council also passed a resolution last night that would require the creation of a redistricting policy manual if its measure passes in November. The council's commission recommended such a manual as a repository for applicable laws and guidelines, and the experiences of previous councils.

Ports criticized the decision to delay creation of the manual until after the November election, saying the voters should know exactly what they're approving.

"You can bet it'll have loopholes big enough to drive a truck through," he said.

But Councilman Stephen G. Samuel Moxley, a Catonsville Democrat, said the important reforms - such as requirements that natural and community boundaries be considered in redistricting - are included in the referendum.