Affordable College Textbook Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to make competitive grants to institutions of higher education (IHEs) to support pilot programs that expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for students.
Requires the grants to be used for:
Requires the full and complete digital content of the educational resources created or adopted using such grant funds to be made available free of charge to the public: (1) on an easily accessible and interoperable website; and (2) in a machine readable, digital format that anyone can directly download, edit, and redistribute.
Directs the Secretary to give special consideration to grant applicants that demonstrate the greatest potential to:
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to include any educational material developed to accompany a college textbook as supplemental material that is subject to college textbook information disclosure requirements.
Expresses the sense of Congress that IHEs should encourage the consideration of open textbooks by faculty within the generally accepted principles of academic freedom that establish the right and responsibility of faculty members to select the most appropriate course materials for their classes.
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1704 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1704
To expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for
students.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
November 14, 2013
Mr. Durbin (for himself and Mr. Franken) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for
students.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Affordable College Textbook Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The high cost of college textbooks continues to be a
barrier for many students in achieving higher education.
(2) According to the College Board, during the 2012-2013
academic year, the average student budget for college books and
supplies was $1,200.
(3) The Government Accountability Office found that new
textbook prices increased 82 percent over the last decade and
that although Federal efforts to increase price transparency
have provided students and families with more and better
information, more must be done to address rising costs.
(4) The growth of the Internet has enabled the creation and
sharing of digital content, including open educational
resources that can be freely used by students, teachers, and
members of the public.
(5) Using open educational resources in place of
traditional materials in large-enrollment college courses can
reduce textbook costs by 80 to 100 percent.
(6) Federal investment in expanding the use of open
educational resources could significantly lower college
textbook costs and reduce financial barriers to higher
education, while making efficient use of taxpayer funds.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Educational resource.--The term ``educational
resource'' means an educational material that can be used in
postsecondary instruction, including textbooks and other
written or audiovisual works.
(2) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1001).
(3) Open educational resource.--The term ``open educational
resource'' means an educational resource that is licensed under
an open license and made freely available online to the public.
(4) Open license.--The term ``open license'' means a
worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable
copyright license granting the public permission to access,
reproduce, publicly perform, publicly display, adapt,
distribute, and otherwise use the work and adaptations of the
work for any purpose, conditioned only on the requirement that
attribution be given to authors as designated.
(5) Open textbook.--The term ``open textbook'' means an
open educational resource or set of open educational resources
that either is a textbook or can be used in place of a textbook
for a postsecondary course at an institution of higher
education.
(6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
SEC. 4. GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Grants Authorized.--From the amounts appropriated under
subsection (i), the Secretary shall make grants, on a competitive
basis, to eligible entities to support pilot programs that expand the
use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for students.
(b) Eligible Entity.--In this section, the term ``eligible entity''
means an institution of higher education or group of institutions of
higher education.
(c) Applications.--
(1) In general.--Each eligible entity desiring a grant
under this section, after consultation with relevant faculty
(including those engaged in the creation of open educational
resources), shall submit an application to the Secretary at
such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information
as the Secretary may reasonably require.
(2) Contents.--Each application submitted under paragraph
(1) shall include a description of the project to be completed
with grant funds and--
(A) a plan for promoting and tracking the use of
open textbooks in postsecondary courses offered by the
eligible entity, including an estimate of the projected
savings that will be achieved for students;
(B) a plan for evaluating, before creating new open
educational resources, whether existing open
educational resources could be used or adapted for the
same purpose;
(C) a plan for quality review and review of
accuracy of any open educational resources to be
created or adapted through the grant;
(D) a plan for disseminating information about the
results of the project to institutions of higher
education outside of the eligible entity, including
promoting the adoption of any open textbooks created or
adapted through the grant; and
(E) a statement on consultation with relevant
faculty, including those engaged in the creation of
open educational resources, in the development of the
application.
(d) Special Consideration.--In awarding grants under this section,
the Secretary shall give special consideration to applications that
demonstrate the greatest potential to--
(1) achieve the highest level of savings for students
through sustainable expanded use of open textbooks in
postsecondary courses offered by the eligible entity;
(2) expand the use of open textbooks at institutions of
higher education outside of the eligible entity; and
(3) produce--
(A) the highest quality open textbooks;
(B) open textbooks that can be most easily utilized
and adapted by faculty members at institutions of
higher education;
(C) open textbooks that correspond to the highest
enrollment courses at institutions of higher education;
and
(D) open textbooks created or adapted in
partnership with entities, including campus bookstores,
that will assist in marketing and distribution of the
open textbook.
(e) Use of Funds.--An eligible entity that receives a grant under
this section shall use the grant funds to carry out any of the
following activities to expand the use of open textbooks:
(1) Professional development for faculty and staff members
at institutions of higher education, including the search for
and review of open textbooks.
(2) Creation or adaptation of open educational resources,
especially open textbooks.
(3) Development or improvement of tools and informational
resources that support the use of open textbooks.
(4) Research evaluating the efficacy of the use of open
textbooks for achieving savings for students.
(5) Partnerships with other entities, including other
institutions of higher education, for-profit organizations, or
nonprofit organizations, to carry out any of the activities
described in paragraphs (1) through (4).
(f) License.--Educational resources created or adapted under
subsection (e) shall be licensed under an open license.
(g) Access and Distribution.--The full and complete digital content
of each educational resource created or adapted under subsection (e)
shall be made available free of charge to the public--
(1) on an easily accessible and interoperable website,
which shall be identified to the Secretary by the eligible
entity; and
(2) in a machine readable, digital format that anyone can
directly download, edit, and redistribute.
(h) Report.--Upon an eligible entity's completion of a project
supported under this section, the eligible entity shall prepare and
submit a report to the Secretary regarding--
(1) the effectiveness of the pilot program in expanding the
use of open textbooks and in achieving savings for students;
(2) the impact of the pilot program on expanding the use of
open textbooks at institutions of higher education outside of
the eligible entity;
(3) educational resources created or adapted under the
grant, including instructions on where the public can access
each educational resource under the terms of subsection (g);
and
(4) all project costs, including the value of any volunteer
labor and institutional capital used for the project.
(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section for
each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years after the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 5. PRICE INFORMATION.
Section 133(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1015b(b)) is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (6); and
(2) in paragraph (9);
(A) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B); and
(B) by striking ``a college textbook that--'' and
inserting ``a college textbook that may include printed
materials, computer disks, website access, and
electronically distributed materials.''.
SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that institutions of higher education
should encourage the consideration of open textbooks by faculty within
the generally accepted principles of academic freedom that establishes
the right and responsibility of faculty members, individually and
collectively, to select course materials that are pedagogically most
appropriate for their classes.
SEC. 7. REPORT TO CONGRESS.
Not later than July 1, 2016, the Secretary shall prepare and submit
a report to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of
the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the
House of Representatives detailing--
(1) the open textbooks created or adapted under this Act;
(2) the adoption of such open textbooks; and
(3) the savings generated for students, States, and the
Federal Government through the use of open textbooks.
SEC. 8. GAO REPORT.
Not later than July 1, 2017, the Comptroller General of the United
States shall prepare and submit a report to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on
Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives on the cost
of textbooks to students at institutions of higher education. The
report shall particularly examine--
(1) the change of the cost of textbooks;
(2) the factors that have contributed to the change of the
cost of textbooks;
(3) the extent to which open textbooks are used at
institutions of higher education; and
(4) the impact of open textbooks on the cost of textbooks.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text of measure as introduced: CR S8051-8052)
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