The proposal, which calls for hiring two probation officers to be assigned only to sex cases, may be less dramatic than what has been suggested in Schenectady and Rensselaer counties and elsewhere.

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"This is a rational approach that makes sense. I'm convinced it will make a difference," Albany County Executive Michael Breslin said at a Tuesday news conference.

Albany County is home to 90 to 100 Level 3 sex offenders, meaning those who have the highest risk of committing another offense. Six of them are being held in the county jail.

"There is the potential for 100 problems in our community," Sheriff James Campbell said. "The only ones I feel safe about are the ones we have locked up."

Campbell said he supported additional incarceration, longer parole terms and the use of global positioning system monitoring of sex offenders. GPS monitoring has proven successful in Westchester County, Campbell said.

Breslin was noncommittal about the satellite-based tracking and said last month's proposal by county legislators needs more cost analysis.

The calls for a crackdown follow a series of headline-grabbing cases involving the abduction and murder of children, such as the March killing of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford of Florida.

In New York, the heightened concern also coincides with the upcoming 10th anniversary in January of the state's version of Megan's Law, named for a 7-year-old New Jersey girl who was raped and murdered by a convicted sex offender in 1994.

While government officials respond to the public outcry for action against child molesters and other predators, some experts caution against one-upmanship that could yield strategies that won't withstand constitutional challenges.

Proponents of change in Albany say their strategy has the right mix of prevention and oversight. The proposal discussed Tuesday calls for the 2006 executive budget to include:

Hiring two specialized probation officers at $55,000 each. They would have a reduced caseload of 30 to 35 sex offenders, so they can visit offenders more often and provide closer supervision.

Provide $20,000 to the Capital District Coalition for Sex Offender Management, a five-county coalition for monitoring and treatment of sex offenders. The money would help continue funding for the program when a federal grant expires.

Adopt the Static 99 risk assessment system, which was developed by the Canadian government and has proven more effective than others in the past decade.

"We want our community to be as safe as possible and to keep sex offenders from re-offending," Breslin said.

The additional spending is subject to approval from the county Legislature, but Breslin expressed confidence that lawmakers would pass it. Four legislators who attended the Tuesday news conference said they supported Breslin's plan.

"I think this is a good start and adds some programs we don't have now," said Legislator George Infante, a former Albany County sheriff.

Other local counties have struggled recently with the knotty issue and are taking different tacks.

Schenectady County officials proposed hiring an additional probation officer, GPS tracking of sex offenders on probation, a task force on notification and closer monitoring by police.

The Saratoga County Sex Offender Task Force recommended better supervision of sex offenders on parole and additional education.

The Rensselaer County Legislature approved a plan to seek state authorization to permit GPS tracking of Level 3 sex offenders and to prevent offenders from living near areas used by children.

Elsewhere, Florida passed a law requiring certain child molesters to submit to a lifetime of GPS tracking. The estimated cost of the GPS bracelets is $4 million for the first year in Florida.

The city of Miami Beach essentially blocked convicted child molesters from moving there by passing an ordinance barring them from living within 2,500 feet of schools, school bus stops, day care centers, parks or playgrounds.

Albany County's proposal aims to prevent sexual offenders from committing more crimes. At least, that's the theory.

"Finding accurate methods for predicting recidivism is the Holy Grail," said Richard Hamill, an Albany therapist who has treated sex offenders for almost 20 years and who oversees the five-county Capital District Coalition for Sex Offender Management.

Hamill estimated 40 percent of sex offenders will strike again within 15 years of a conviction. Currently, there are 5,336 Level 3 sex offenders listed on New York's sex offender registry and a total of 21,417 on all levels.

Yet Hamill said studies have shown strict monitoring, regular polygraph tests and long-term treatment can cut recidivism in half.

"You never read about all those crimes we prevented through treatment," Hamill said. "I'm also proud of the people I helped put back in jail because they were not complying with their probation and we got them off the streets."