AUGUSTA — A plan to give judges another sentencing option besides probation or prison has gained the support of the McKernan administration, a legislative committee and groups interested in prison reform.

The plan calls for creation of two 50-bed restitution centers to house non-violent offenders. These prisoners would hold jobs so they could pay personal bills, compensate their victims and help cover the costs of operating the centers.

Those not working would have to look for employment or training for a job, and all paychecks would go to the centers.

A resident’s daily life would be more restricted than if he were on probation, but he would lead a more productive life than a prison inmate because he would earn money, pay taxes and perform mandatory community service.

Under the plan, a judge could send a criminal to one of the centers as a condition of probation. Judges also could use the centers to house people who violate conditions of their probation but, in the judge’s opinion, should remain on probation instead of going to prison.

That could help ease overcrowding, according to state Corrections Commissioner Donald Allen.

The idea of building two centers has the backing of the administration, the Legislature’s Corrections Committee and special-interest groups that have been pushing for improved prison conditions, including the Maine Council of Churches and the Maine Civil Liberties Union.

The Corrections Committee unanimously endorsed an amended version of a bill filed by Rep. Cushman D. Anthony, D-South Portland, to build the centers in Androscoggin and Penobscot counties at a cost of $2.8 million.

The money would come from a $20.2 million prison bond issue now before the committee.

The Appropriations Committee and the Legislature will have the final say on whether any prison borrowing plan is submitted to the voters.

The plan also should force probationers at the restitution centers to make restitution payments more faithfully because they would have to relinquish their paychecks so the money could be deducted.

“It would help to pay society back for what was done to it,” said Sen. Beverly M. Bustin, D-Hallowell, Senate chairwoman of the Corrections Committee. “And it would save the taxpayers money.”

Restitution centers are a new idea in Maine, reflecting the growing interest in so-called alternative sentences that emphasize community-based programs as an alternative to imprisonment for prisoners who pose no obvious threat to public safety.