Legislation Efforts
The Cost of Books had risen uncontrollably
As documented by several PIRG (public interest research group) reports and a recent US Congressional Report, textbooks' cost has risen at a far greater rate than expected inflation. The California legislature, the CSU Board of Trustees, the Academic Senate of the CSU (ASCSU), and the California State Student Association have all taken steps to elevate the importance of textbook affordability. For example, in 2004, the California legislature passed
AB2477
and is currently considering two textbook-related bills. The ASCSU in May 2006 approved
ASAS-2747
Faculty Role in Mitigating the Cost of Textbooks.
On October 29, 2015, the
Department of Education Final Regulation on Open Licensing Requirement for Competitive Grant Programs
issued a new regulation that requires all copyrightable intellectual property created with grant funds from the US Department of Education to have an open license. The final regulations became effective on May 22, 2017, and the department fully implemented this rule for all applicable competitive grant programs beginning in 2018.
College Textbook Affordability Act of 2015
Assembly Bill 798
would establish the College Textbook Affordability Act of 2015 to reduce costs for college students by encouraging faculty to accelerate the adoption of lower-cost, high-quality open educational resources.
The Affordable College Textbook Act
House of Representatives Bill 3840
and
Senate Bill 1864
Affordable College Textbook Act are two bills to expand the use of open textbooks to achieve savings for students.
The Donahoe Higher Education Act
Senate Bill 1359
requires California State universities to attach a recognizable symbol to courses that exclusively use digital materials free of charge to students with a low-cost option for print versions. Also, communicate to students that the course materials used for the courses identified are free of charge.
OER State Policy Playbook
The
OER State Policy Playbook
provides policy recommendations for state legislators in the US interested in tackling college affordability with Open Educational Resources (OER).
OER State Legislative Guide
The
OER State Legislative Guide
provides policymakers and staff with a cross-sectional, annotated set of legislative texts that help expand the use of OER (Open Educational Resources), a powerful alternative to the broken textbook market.
"By requiring an open license, we will ensure that high-quality resources created through our public funds are shared with the public, thereby ensuring equal access for all teachers and students regardless of their location or background."
John King, Secretary of Education
