AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) Maine’s fishery managers are supporting a proposal designed to improve the clam haul by allowing towns to set limits on the size of clams that can be harvested.

Lawmakers are considering the bill, which would let municipalities set minimum and maximum size limits that are at least as strict as the state minimum of two inches. The bill sponsor, Democratic Rep. Joyce McCreight, says the move would allow towns to protect larger clams that can reproduce more.

The proposal comes as Maine’s clam harvest is declining. The Maine Department of Marine Resources testified in favor of the bill Thursday. State marine policy director Deirdre Gilbert said municipalities “have played an important role in shellfish management and conservation since the earliest days of Maine’s statehood.”

A committee might vote April 16.