II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1036 To expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for students and improve textbook price information. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 4, 2019 Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. KING, Ms. SMITH, and Ms. SINEMA) 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 and improve textbook price information. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Affordable College 4 Textbook Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The high cost of college textbooks continues 8 to be a barrier for many students in achieving high- 9 er education. 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1036 IS (2) According to the College Board, during the 1 2017–2018 academic year, the average student 2 budget for college books and supplies at 4-year pub- 3 lic institutions of higher education was $1,240. 4 (3) The Government Accountability Office 5 found that new textbook prices increased 82 percent 6 between 2002 and 2012 and that although Federal 7 efforts to increase price transparency have provided 8 students and families with more and better informa- 9 tion, more must be done to address rising costs. 10 (4) The growth of the internet has enabled the 11 creation and sharing of digital content, including 12 open educational resources that can be freely used 13 by students, teachers, and members of the public. 14 (5) According to the Student PIRGs, expanded 15 use of open educational resources has the potential 16 to save students more than a billion dollars annually. 17 (6) Federal investment in expanding the use of 18 open educational resources could significantly lower 19 college textbook costs and reduce financial barriers 20 to higher education, while making efficient use of 21 taxpayer funds. 22 (7) Educational materials, including open edu- 23 cational resources, must be accessible to the widest 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1036 IS possible range of individuals, including those with 1 disabilities. 2 SEC. 3. OPEN TEXTBOOK GRANT PROGRAM. 3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 4 (1) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 5 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 6 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher 7 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 8 (2) OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE.—The term 9 ‘‘open educational resource’’ has the meaning given 10 the term in section 133 of the Higher Education Act 11 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015b). 12 (3) OPEN TEXTBOOK.—The term ‘‘open text- 13 book’’ means an open educational resource or set of 14 open educational resources that either is a textbook 15 or can be used in place of a textbook for a postsec- 16 ondary course at an institution of higher education. 17 (4) RELEVANT FACULTY.—The term ‘‘relevant 18 faculty’’ means both tenure track and contingent 19 faculty members who may be involved in the creation 20 or use of open textbooks created as part of an appli- 21 cation under subsection (d). 22 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 23 the Secretary of Education. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1036 IS (6) SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL.—The term 1 ‘‘supplemental material’’ has the meaning given the 2 term in section 133 of the Higher Education Act of 3 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015b). 4 (b) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts ap- 5 propriated under subsection (k), the Secretary shall make 6 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities to sup- 7 port projects that expand the use of open textbooks in 8 order to achieve savings for students while maintaining or 9 improving instruction and student learning outcomes. 10 (c) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this section, the term ‘‘el- 11 igible entity’’ means an institution of higher education, a 12 group of institutions of higher education, or States on be- 13 half of institutions of higher education. 14 (d) APPLICATIONS.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity desiring 16 a grant under this section, after consultation with 17 relevant faculty, shall submit an application to the 18 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accom- 19 panied by such information as the Secretary may 20 reasonably require. 21 (2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 22 under paragraph (1) shall include a description of 23 the project to be completed with grant funds and— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1036 IS (A) a plan for promoting and tracking the 1 use of open textbooks in postsecondary courses 2 offered by the eligible entity, including an esti- 3 mate of the projected savings that will be 4 achieved for students; 5 (B) a plan for evaluating, before creating 6 new open textbooks, whether existing open text- 7 books could be used or adapted for the same 8 purpose; 9 (C) a plan for quality review and review of 10 accuracy of any open textbooks to be created or 11 adapted through the grant; 12 (D) a plan for assessing the impact of 13 open textbooks on instruction and student 14 learning outcomes at the eligible entity; 15 (E) a plan for disseminating information 16 about the results of the project to institutions 17 of higher education outside of the eligible enti- 18 ty, including promoting the adoption of any 19 open textbooks created or adapted through the 20 grant; and 21 (F) a statement on consultation with rel- 22 evant faculty, including those engaged in the 23 creation of open textbooks, in the development 24 of the application. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1036 IS (e) SPECIAL CONSIDERATION.—In awarding grants 1 under this section, the Secretary shall give special consid- 2 eration to applications that demonstrate the greatest po- 3 tential to— 4 (1) achieve the highest level of savings for stu- 5 dents through sustainable expanded use of open 6 textbooks in postsecondary courses offered by the el- 7 igible entity; 8 (2) expand the use of open textbooks at institu- 9 tions of higher education outside of the eligible enti- 10 ty; and 11 (3) produce— 12 (A) the highest quality open textbooks; 13 (B) open textbooks that can be most easily 14 utilized and adapted by faculty members at in- 15 stitutions of higher education; 16 (C) open textbooks that correspond to the 17 highest enrollment courses at institutions of 18 higher education; 19 (D) open textbooks created or adapted in 20 partnership with entities within institutions of 21 higher education, including campus bookstores, 22 that will assist in marketing and distribution of 23 the open textbook; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1036 IS (E) open textbooks that are accessible to 1 students with disabilities. 2 (f) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity that receives 3 a grant under this section shall use the grant funds to 4 carry out any of the following activities to expand the use 5 of open textbooks: 6 (1) Professional development for any faculty 7 and staff members at institutions of higher edu- 8 cation, including the search for and review of open 9 textbooks. 10 (2) Creation or adaptation of open textbooks. 11 (3) Development or improvement of supple- 12 mental materials and informational resources that 13 are necessary to support the use of open textbooks, 14 including accessible instructional materials for stu- 15 dents with disabilities. 16 (4) Research evaluating the efficacy of the use 17 of open textbooks for achieving savings for students 18 and the impact on instruction and student learning 19 outcomes. 20 (g) LICENSE.—For each open textbook, supplemental 21 material, or informational resource created or adapted 22 wholly or in part under this section that constitutes a new 23 copyrightable work, the eligible entity receiving the grant 24 shall release such textbook, material, or resource to the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1036 IS public under a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, and 1 irrevocable license to exercise any of the rights under copy- 2 right conditioned only on the requirement that attribution 3 be given as directed by the copyright owner. 4 (h) ACCESS AND DISTRIBUTION.—The full and com- 5 plete digital content of each open textbook, supplemental 6 material, or informational resource created or adapted 7 wholly or in part under this section shall be made available 8 free of charge to the public— 9 (1) on an easily accessible and interoperable 10 website, which shall be identified to the Secretary by 11 the eligible entity; 12 (2) in a machine readable, digital format that 13 anyone can directly download, edit with attribution, 14 and redistribute; and 15 (3) in a format that conforms to accessibility 16 standards under section 508 of the Rehabilitation 17 Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), where feasible. 18 (i) REPORT.—Upon an eligible entity’s completion of 19 a project supported under this section, the eligible entity 20 shall prepare and submit a report to the Secretary regard- 21 ing— 22 (1) the effectiveness of the project in expanding 23 the use of open textbooks and in achieving savings 24 for students; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1036 IS (2) the impact of the project on expanding the 1 use of open textbooks at institutions of higher edu- 2 cation outside of the eligible entity; 3 (3) open textbooks, supplemental materials, and 4 informational resources created or adapted wholly or 5 in part under the grant, including instructions on 6 where the public can access each educational re- 7 source under the terms of subsection (h); 8 (4) the impact of the project on instruction and 9 student learning outcomes; and 10 (5) all project costs, including the value of any 11 volunteer labor and institutional capital used for the 12 project. 13 (j) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 14 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 15 prepare and submit a report to the Committee on Health, 16 Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the 17 Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Rep- 18 resentatives detailing— 19 (1) the open textbooks, supplemental materials, 20 and informational resources created or adapted 21 wholly or in part under this section; 22 (2) the adoption of such open textbooks, includ- 23 ing outside of the eligible entity; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1036 IS (3) the savings generated for students, States, 1 and the Federal Government through projects sup- 2 ported under this section; and 3 (4) the impact of projects supported under this 4 section on instruction and student learning out- 5 comes. 6 (k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 7 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 8 such sums as are necessary. 9 SEC. 4. TEXTBOOK PRICE INFORMATION. 10 Section 133 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 11 U.S.C. 1015b) is amended— 12 (1) in subsection (b)— 13 (A) by striking paragraph (6) and insert- 14 ing the following: 15 ‘‘(6) OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE.—The 16 term ‘open educational resource’ means a teaching, 17 learning, or research resource that is offered freely 18 to users in at least one form and that resides in the 19 public domain or has been released under an open 20 copyright license that allows for its free use, reuse, 21 modification, and sharing with attribution.’’; and 22 (B) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘text- 23 book that’’ and all that follows through the pe- 24 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘textbook that 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1036 IS may include printed materials, computer disks, 1 website access, and electronically distributed 2 materials.’’; 3 (2) in subsection (c)(1)— 4 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 5 (A), by striking ‘‘or other person or adopting 6 entity in charge of selecting course materials’’ 7 and inserting ‘‘or other person or entity in 8 charge of selecting or aiding in the discovery 9 and procurement of course materials’’; and 10 (B) by adding at the end the following: 11 ‘‘(E) Whether the college textbook or sup- 12 plemental material is an open educational re- 13 source.’’; 14 (3) in subsection (d)— 15 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 16 ‘‘ISBN’’; and 17 (B) in paragraph (1)— 18 (i) in the matter preceding subpara- 19 graph (A)— 20 (I) by striking ‘‘disclose, on the 21 institution’s Internet course schedule 22 and in a manner of the institution’s 23 choosing, the International Standard 24 Book Number and retail price infor- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1036 IS mation’’ and inserting ‘‘verify and dis- 1 close (on, or through a link from, the 2 institution’s Internet course schedule 3 and in a manner of the institution’s 4 choosing) the International Standard 5 Book Number and retail price infor- 6 mation’’; 7 (II) by striking ‘‘and retail price’’ 8 and inserting ‘‘, retail price, and any 9 applicable fee’’; 10 (III) by inserting ‘‘, and whether 11 each required and recommended text- 12 book and supplemental material is an 13 open educational resource,’’ after 14 ‘‘supplemental materials’’; and 15 (IV) by striking ‘‘used for prereg- 16 istration and registration purposes’’; 17 and 18 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 19 ‘‘for a college textbook or supplemental 20 material, then the institution shall so indi- 21 cate by placing the designation ‘To Be De- 22 termined’ ’’ and inserti [Text truncated for display. 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