BANGOR – The commission to reduce prison populations and correction costs will recommend the state open up 112 new prison beds to the tune of $2.4 million to help provide immediate relief to the state’s prisons, which officials say are in crisis because of too many prisoners and too few beds.

That is one of nearly 50 recommendations the commission will present to the Legislature. The 17-member commission, established by the Legislature in response to a 20 percent increase in the state’s prison population since 2000, is composed of judges, lawyers, advocates, treatment providers and lawmakers and has been meeting since early fall.

Even though it is recommending the new beds, which passed by a 10-1 vote with three abstaining, the commission hopes its remaining recommendations will help reduce, not increase, the prison population.

Despite a plea from the chairman of the commission studying Maine’s sex-offender laws and issues, the prison commission still voted to recommend a one-year moratorium on any changes to the state’s criminal code that would increase sentences or change classification on inmates “until an impact study can be accomplished to determine the impact (including costs) of sentences on inmate population.”

The commission will note in its report, however, that it defers to the “Legislature’s ability to address any conflicting recommendations between the two commissions.”

Sen. Sean Faircloth, D. Bangor, chairman of the sex-offender commission, asked the prison commission to exempt sex crimes from its moratorium recommendation because his commission plans to recommend penalty enhancements for certain sex offenders. Faircloth said all but one or two of the sex-offender commission members seemed to be behind a couple of recommendations that could result in longer prison sentences for certain sex offenders.

Prison commission members voted 12-1 to support the moratorium recommendation without the sex-offender exemption.

Other prison commission recommendations include:

. Developing a pilot Community Assessment Center to assess juvenile offenders to try to divert them into other programs other than incarceration.

. Increasing inmate good time in county jails and state prisons from two to four days a month, as well as establishing a Work Education Rehabilitation Credit Program in state prison that would allow inmates who participate in education, counseling or work programs to earn up to five days per month off their sentence.

. Establish Community Corrections Boards, administered by the sheriffs of each county, to try to develop and market community correction programs in their regions.

. Employ “boundary spanner” positions in each of the state’s prosecutorial regions to help “bridge barriers” between the justice system and treatment programs.

. Decrease the crime of burglary to a motor vehicle from its current Class C felony status to a Class D misdemeanor.

Currently an offender is guilty of Class C theft if he or she steals $1,000 or more of property. The commission recommends an offender be found guilty of Class C theft for $3,000 to $10,000 worth of property. Also what was a Class D theft (above $500) would be the lesser Class E theft. A Class D theft would require a theft of property valued between $1,000 and $3,000.

The commission also will recommend that a probation requirement be eliminated for those convicted of Class D or E misdemeanors.

. Establishment of a “deferred disposition” sentencing program that would allow judges to withhold a guilty finding on low-level cases if defendants complete certain education or substance abuse requirements.

The Department of Corrections has been asked to provide cost estimates on any of the recommendations that would involve expenditures, as well as predicting the savings that could result in the next 10 years.

The recommendations will be turned into a final report to be presented to the Legislature along with any draft legislation, according to Jody Harris of the State Planning Office.

To view all of the recommendations go to www.me.gov/spo/sp/commission.