September 23, 2025 — Senators Tim Scott (R-SC) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) introduced new legislation Friday to study the causes of declining native shellfish populations along the United States’ East Coast.
The bipartisan bill’s primary function would be to study the declining quahog, or hard shell clam, population, earning the apt moniker of the QUAHOGS Act – Quantifying Uncertainty and Action to Help Optimize Growth of Shellfish.
Besides quahogs, the legislators cited declining populations of other bivalves too, like oysters, scallops, and soft-shell clams, up and down the eastern coast. The bill would establish the East Coast Bivalve Research Task Force comprised of between 16 and 21 members chaired by a representative from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Agriculture, New England, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Atlantic States Fishery Management Councils, officials from state fish and wildlife management agencies, bivalve fishing industry representatives, academic experts, and at least one Tribal representative would all be appointed by the US Secretary of Commerce to flesh out the task force.