New bill may lower book costs

There may be financial relief on the way for students overburdened by the high cost of textbooks thanks to legislation recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

The College Opportunity and Affordability Act (H.R. 4137) offers a students' bill of rights and is the first federal action to take aim at the price of college texts, which have increased by more than twice the rate of inflation over the last 20 years, according to a report released by the U.S. Government Accountability Office in 2005.

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the bill Feb. 14.

The average student spends approximately $900 per on textbooks each year, according to James Radley, University of Cincinnati Student Government president.

Gina Galvin, a first-year undecided student, said she spent approximately $800 on textbooks over two quarters. Every book she bought was used.

"I think it's ridiculous considering 60 percent of the time you don't even use [the books] in class - you barely open the books," Galvin said.

The legislation contains three provisions that are set to regulate textbook pricing in the short term, according to Nicole Allen, an advocate with the Student Public Interest Research Group, an organization that lobbies for, among other things, the affordability of textbooks.

In the short-term, the bill would require that textbook bundling be ended - students will be able to buy just those pieces required for their classes - bypassing unnecessary CDs, workbooks and online passcodes.

A second provision would require faculty and schools to supply a list of needed books to students sooner, allowing students more time to shop around for better pricing and more used copies.

The final provision deals with how textbooks are chosen by instructors.

"It's on the publishers to disclose their prices because every other industry has to do that," Allen said. "You walk into the supermarket and their prices are on the shelves."

James C. Wilson, associate professor of English and comparative literature confirmed pricing information is not shared with professors. As a result, he said, "I agonize over which and how many books to assign."

Wilson makes older copies of required texts available to students and gives students a little extra time to shop around at the beginning of each quarter.

"I think it's the least I can do considering the extraordinary costs of college texts," Wilson said. "I also make damn sure I use the textbooks I order for my classes."

Allan Pinhas, professor of chemistry, said he asks

publisher representatives outright about the prices of the books he is considering.

"If you don't tell me the price," Pinhas said, "I don't want to talk to you."

Pinhas said he has questioned publishers as to why editions change so frequently. In his area of expertise, organic chemistry, editions typically change every three to four years. He said that when pressed, publishers freely admit the edition changes are meant to kill the used book market.

"They get nothing when you buy a used book," Pinhas said.

According to Allen, a threshold is reached where the publishers are no longer making a profit on a specific book because of the used copies available. They re-order the pages and change the workbook problems and release it as a new edition.

"Calculus hasn't changed in 150 years," Allen said.

By constantly updating books, publishers are limiting used-book options, forcing students to purchase the newest editions.

Allen said the long-term goal of the student groups is to increase the availability and use of alternatives to expensive textbooks.

Chase Malone, a second-year communication student, said he spent more than $700 on books already and higher prices means he might skip a book or two each quarter. Malone and his friends also share books in an effort to diminish costs.

Malone said he misses the old days.

"Some books should be assigned to you like they were in high school," Malone said.

Malone also said he would consider renting textbooks if it meant paying only a fraction of the purchase price.

While rental libraries and digital marketplaces are options, Allen said he wants to see open-access textbooks go mainstream.

Open-access textbooks are free, online textbooks written by qualified authors who, instead of selling the books to publishers, make the content available online for students at no charge, according to MakeTextbooksAffordable.org Students can download and print open-access books, or purchase professionally bound copies for a nominal fee.

Pinhas said he is concerned about how open access will impact royalties to professors who participate in writing textbooks. His introductory forensics class is using a draft copy of a guidebook he wrote.

"My goal is what's good for the students," Pinhas said. "I'd love to sell it - the actual form doesn't matter".

Open-access books could also work for Wilson, who said he uses online material as much as possible.

"The problem with that is that sometimes the materials are posted without permission," Wilson said, "which means my use is a violation of copyright."

The licensing of open-access texts would allow instructors to customize the material, adding, subtracting and revising material as they see fit. A particular edition could be used indefinitely.

The next step toward students realizing savings is scheduled to occur within the next few weeks, when the House and Senate put together the final congressional bill. If the textbook provisions are included, savings should come quickly.