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. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Affordable College 

5 Textbook Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The high cost of college textbooks continues 

9 to be a barrier for many students in achieving high10 er education. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 1036 IS

1 (2) According to the College Board, during the 

2 2017–2018 academic year, the average student 

3 budget for college books and supplies at 4-year pub4 lic institutions of higher education was $1,240. 

5 (3) The Government Accountability Office 

6 found that new textbook prices increased 82 percent 

7 between 2002 and 2012 and that although Federal 

8 efforts to increase price transparency have provided 

9 students and families with more and better informa10 tion, more must be done to address rising costs. 

11 (4) The growth of the internet has enabled the 

12 creation and sharing of digital content, including 

13 open educational resources that can be freely used 

14 by students, teachers, and members of the public. 

15 (5) According to the Student PIRGs, expanded 

16 use of open educational resources has the potential 

17 to save students more than a billion dollars annually. 

18 (6) Federal investment in expanding the use of 

19 open educational resources could significantly lower 

20 college textbook costs and reduce financial barriers 

21 to higher education, while making efficient use of 

22 taxpayer funds. 

23 (7) Educational materials, including open edu24 cational resources, must be accessible to the widest 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 1036 IS

1 possible range of individuals, including those with 

2 disabilities. 

3 SEC. 3. OPEN TEXTBOOK GRANT PROGRAM. 

4 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

5 (1) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

6 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

7 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher 

8 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

9 (2) OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE.—The term 

10 ‘‘open educational resource’’ has the meaning given 

11 the term in section 133 of the Higher Education Act 

12 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015b). 

13 (3) OPEN TEXTBOOK.—The term ‘‘open text14 book’’ means an open educational resource or set of 

15 open educational resources that either is a textbook 

16 or can be used in place of a textbook for a postsec17 ondary course at an institution of higher education. 

18 (4) RELEVANT FACULTY.—The term ‘‘relevant 

19 faculty’’ means both tenure track and contingent 

20 faculty members who may be involved in the creation 

21 or use of open textbooks created as part of an appli22 cation under subsection (d). 

23 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

24 the Secretary of Education. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 1036 IS

1 (6) SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL.—The term 

2 ‘‘supplemental material’’ has the meaning given the 

3 term in section 133 of the Higher Education Act of 

4 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015b). 

5 (b) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts ap6 propriated under subsection (k), the Secretary shall make 

7 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities to sup8 port projects that expand the use of open textbooks in 

9 order to achieve savings for students while maintaining or 

10 improving instruction and student learning outcomes. 

11 (c) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this section, the term ‘‘el12 igible entity’’ means an institution of higher education, a 

13 group of institutions of higher education, or States on be14 half of institutions of higher education. 

15 (d) APPLICATIONS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity desiring 

17 a grant under this section, after consultation with 

18 relevant faculty, shall submit an application to the 

19 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accom20 panied by such information as the Secretary may 

21 reasonably require. 

22 (2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 

23 under paragraph (1) shall include a description of 

24 the project to be completed with grant funds and— 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 1036 IS

1 (A) a plan for promoting and tracking the 

2 use of open textbooks in postsecondary courses 

3 offered by the eligible entity, including an esti4 mate of the projected savings that will be 

5 achieved for students; 

6 (B) a plan for evaluating, before creating 

7 new open textbooks, whether existing open text8 books could be used or adapted for the same 

9 purpose; 

10 (C) a plan for quality review and review of 

11 accuracy of any open textbooks to be created or 

12 adapted through the grant; 

13 (D) a plan for assessing the impact of 

14 open textbooks on instruction and student 

15 learning outcomes at the eligible entity; 

16 (E) a plan for disseminating information 

17 about the results of the project to institutions 

18 of higher education outside of the eligible enti19 ty, including promoting the adoption of any 

20 open textbooks created or adapted through the 

21 grant; and 

22 (F) a statement on consultation with rel23 evant faculty, including those engaged in the 

24 creation of open textbooks, in the development 

25 of the application. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 1036 IS

1 (e) SPECIAL CONSIDERATION.—In awarding grants 

2 under this section, the Secretary shall give special consid3 eration to applications that demonstrate the greatest po4 tential to— 

5 (1) achieve the highest level of savings for stu6 dents through sustainable expanded use of open 

7 textbooks in postsecondary courses offered by the el8 igible entity; 

9 (2) expand the use of open textbooks at institu10 tions of higher education outside of the eligible enti11 ty; and 

12 (3) produce— 

13 (A) the highest quality open textbooks; 

14 (B) open textbooks that can be most easily 

15 utilized and adapted by faculty members at in16 stitutions of higher education; 

17 (C) open textbooks that correspond to the 

18 highest enrollment courses at institutions of 

19 higher education; 

20 (D) open textbooks created or adapted in 

21 partnership with entities within institutions of 

22 higher education, including campus bookstores, 

23 that will assist in marketing and distribution of 

24 the open textbook; and 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 1036 IS

1 (E) open textbooks that are accessible to 

2 students with disabilities. 

3 (f) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity that receives 

4 a grant under this section shall use the grant funds to 

5 carry out any of the following activities to expand the use 

6 of open textbooks: 

7 (1) Professional development for any faculty 

8 and staff members at institutions of higher edu9 cation, including the search for and review of open 

10 textbooks. 

11 (2) Creation or adaptation of open textbooks. 

12 (3) Development or improvement of supple13 mental materials and informational resources that 

14 are necessary to support the use of open textbooks, 

15 including accessible instructional materials for stu16 dents with disabilities. 

17 (4) Research evaluating the efficacy of the use 

18 of open textbooks for achieving savings for students 

19 and the impact on instruction and student learning 

20 outcomes. 

21 (g) LICENSE.—For each open textbook, supplemental 

22 material, or informational resource created or adapted 

23 wholly or in part under this section that constitutes a new 

24 copyrightable work, the eligible entity receiving the grant 

25 shall release such textbook, material, or resource to the 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 1036 IS

1 public under a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, and 

2 irrevocable license to exercise any of the rights under copy3 right conditioned only on the requirement that attribution 

4 be given as directed by the copyright owner. 

5 (h) ACCESS AND DISTRIBUTION.—The full and com6 plete digital content of each open textbook, supplemental 

7 material, or informational resource created or adapted 

8 wholly or in part under this section shall be made available 

9 free of charge to the public— 

10 (1) on an easily accessible and interoperable 

11 website, which shall be identified to the Secretary by 

12 the eligible entity; 

13 (2) in a machine readable, digital format that 

14 anyone can directly download, edit with attribution, 

15 and redistribute; and 

16 (3) in a format that conforms to accessibility 

17 standards under section 508 of the Rehabilitation 

18 Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), where feasible. 

19 (i) REPORT.—Upon an eligible entity’s completion of 

20 a project supported under this section, the eligible entity 

21 shall prepare and submit a report to the Secretary regard22 ing— 

23 (1) the effectiveness of the project in expanding 

24 the use of open textbooks and in achieving savings 

25 for students; 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 1036 IS

1 (2) the impact of the project on expanding the 

2 use of open textbooks at institutions of higher edu3 cation outside of the eligible entity; 

4 (3) open textbooks, supplemental materials, and 

5 informational resources created or adapted wholly or 

6 in part under the grant, including instructions on 

7 where the public can access each educational re8 source under the terms of subsection (h); 

9 (4) the impact of the project on instruction and 

10 student learning outcomes; and 

11 (5) all project costs, including the value of any 

12 volunteer labor and institutional capital used for the 

13 project. 

14 (j) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 years 

15 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

16 prepare and submit a report to the Committee on Health, 

17 Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the 

18 Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Rep19 resentatives detailing— 

20 (1) the open textbooks, supplemental materials, 

21 and informational resources created or adapted 

22 wholly or in part under this section; 

23 (2) the adoption of such open textbooks, includ24 ing outside of the eligible entity; 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 1036 IS

1 (3) the savings generated for students, States, 

2 and the Federal Government through projects sup3 ported under this section; and 

4 (4) the impact of projects supported under this 

5 section on instruction and student learning out6 comes. 

7 (k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

8 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

9 such sums as are necessary. 

10 SEC. 4. TEXTBOOK PRICE INFORMATION. 

11 Section 133 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

12 U.S.C. 1015b) is amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (b)— 

14 (A) by striking paragraph (6) and insert15 ing the following: 

16 ‘‘(6) OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE.—The 

17 term ‘open educational resource’ means a teaching, 

18 learning, or research resource that is offered freely 

19 to users in at least one form and that resides in the 

20 public domain or has been released under an open 

21 copyright license that allows for its free use, reuse, 

22 modification, and sharing with attribution.’’; and 

23 (B) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘text24 book that’’ and all that follows through the pe25 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘textbook that 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 1036 IS

1 may include printed materials, computer disks, 

2 website access, and electronically distributed 

3 materials.’’; 

4 (2) in subsection (c)(1)— 

5 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

6 (A), by striking ‘‘or other person or adopting 

7 entity in charge of selecting course materials’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘or other person or entity in 

9 charge of selecting or aiding in the discovery 

10 and procurement of course materials’’; and 

11 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(E) Whether the college textbook or sup13 plemental material is an open educational re14 source.’’; 

15 (3) in subsection (d)— 

16 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 

17 ‘‘ISBN’’; and 

18 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

19 (i) in the matter preceding subpara20 graph (A)— 

21 (I) by striking ‘‘disclose, on the 

22 institution’s Internet course schedule 

23 and in a manner of the institution’s 

24 choosing, the International Standard 

25 Book Number and retail price inforVerDate 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

1 mation’’ and inserting ‘‘verify and dis2 close (on, or through a link from, the 

3 institution’s Internet course schedule 

4 and in a manner of the institution’s 

5 choosing) the International Standard 

6 Book Number and retail price infor7 mation’’; 

8 (II) by striking ‘‘and retail price’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘, retail price, and any 

10 applicable fee’’; 

11 (III) by inserting ‘‘, and whether 

12 each required and recommended text13 book and supplemental material is an 

14 open educational resource,’’ after 

15 ‘‘supplemental materials’’; and 

16 (IV) by striking ‘‘used for prereg17 istration and registration purposes’’; 

18 and 

19 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

20 ‘‘for a college textbook or supplemental 

21 material, then the institution shall so indi22 cate by placing the designation ‘To Be De23 termined’ ’’ and inserting ‘‘or available for 

24 a college textbook or supplemental mateVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:41 Apr 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1036.IS S1036

pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 1036 IS

1 rial, then the institution shall indicate the 

2 status of such information’’; 

3 (4) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(e) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION FOR COLLEGE

6 BOOKSTORES.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An institution of higher 

8 education receiving Federal financial assistance shall 

9 assist a college bookstore that is operated by, or in 

10 a contractual relationship or otherwise affiliated 

11 with, the institution, in obtaining required and rec12 ommended course materials information and such 

13 course schedule and enrollment information as is 

14 reasonably required to implement this section so 

15 that such bookstore may— 

16 ‘‘(A) verify availability of such materials; 

17 ‘‘(B) source lower cost options, including 

18 presenting lower cost alternatives to faculty for 

19 faculty to consider, when practicable; and 

20 ‘‘(C) maximize the availability of format 

21 options for students. 

22 ‘‘(2) DUE DATES.—In carrying out paragraph 

23 (1), an institution of higher education may establish 

24 due dates for faculty or departments to notify the 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 1036 IS

1 campus bookstore of required and recommended 

2 course materials.’’; 

3 (5) in subsection (f)— 

4 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and 

5 (4) as paragraphs (4) and (5); and 

6 (B) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(3) available open educational resources;’’; and 

9 (6) by striking subsection (g) and redesignating 

10 subsections (h) and (i) as subsections (g) and (h), 

11 respectively. 

12 SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

13 It is the sense of Congress that institutions of higher 

14 education should encourage the consideration of open text15 books by faculty within the generally accepted principles 

16 of academic freedom that establishes the right and respon17 sibility of faculty members, individually and collectively, 

18 to select course materials that are pedagogically most ap19 propriate for their classes. 

20 SEC. 6. GAO REPORT. 

21 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 

22 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

23 shall prepare and submit a report to the Committee on 

24 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and 

25 the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 1036 IS

1 Representatives on the cost of textbooks to students at 

2 institutions of higher education. The report shall particu3 larly examine— 

4 (1) the implementation of section 133 of the 

5 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015b), 

6 as amended by section 4, including— 

7 (A) the availability of college textbook and 

8 open educational resource information on 

9 course schedules; 

10 (B) the compliance of publishers with ap11 plicable requirements under such section; and 

12 (C) the costs and benefits to institutions of 

13 higher education and to students; 

14 (2) the change in the cost of textbooks; 

15 (3) the factors, including open textbooks, that 

16 have contributed to the change of the cost of text17 books; 

18 (4) the extent to which open textbooks are used 

19 at institutions of higher education; and 

20 (5) how institutions are tracking the impact of 

21 open textbooks on instruction and student learning 

22 outcomes. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS