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The Affordable College Textbook Act is a United States legislative bill intended to support use of open textbooks. It was introduced on April 4, 2019, to the 116th Congress by four senators (Dick Durbin of Illinois, Angus King of Maine, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, Tina Smith of Minnesota), and one representative (Joe Neguse of Colorado).[1] Organizations supporting the bill include the American Federation of Teachers, the American Association of Community Colleges, the Association of Research Libraries, and Creative Commons.[1]
History[edit]
| Congress | Short title | Bill number(s) | Date introduced | Sponsor(s) | # of cosponsors | Latest status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 113th Congress | Affordable College Textbook Act | H.R. 3538 | November 19th, 2013 | Rubén Hinojosa
(D-TX) |
47 | Died in Committee |
| S. 1704 | November 14th, 2013 | Dick Durbin
(D-IL) |
5 | Died in committee | ||
| 114th Congress | H.R. 3721 | October 8th, 2015 | Rubén Hinojosa
(D-TX) |
6 | Died in committee | |
| S. 2176 | October 8th, 2015 | Dick Durbin
(D-IL) |
3 | Died in committee | ||
| 115th Congress | H.R. 3840 | September 26th, 2017 | Jared Polis
(D-CO) |
7 | Died in committee | |
| S. 1864 | September 26th, 2017 | Dick Durbin
(D-IL) |
6 | Died in committee | ||
| 116th Congress | H.R. 2107 | April 4th, 2019 | Joe Neguse
(D-CO) |
3 | Died in committee | |
| S. 1036 | April 4th, 2019 | Dick Durbin
(D-IL) |
4 | Died in committee |
Previously, the bill was introduced to the 115th Congress on September 26, 2017.[2] If passed, the program would have tried to make education less expensive for college students.[2] The U.S. Department of Education would have coordinated funding. U.S. Senators Dick Durbin of Illinois, Al Franken of Minnesota, and Angus King of Maine sponsored S.1864, and U.S. Representatives Jared Polis of Colorado and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona sponsored the identical H.R.3840. Later co-sponsors in the Senate included Democrats Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Benjamin Cardin of Maryland, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, and Tina Smith of Minnesota.[2] Later co-sponsors in the House included a mixture of Republicans and Democrats: Carlos Curbelo of Florida, Peter DeFazio of Oregon, Peter King of New York, Mia Love of Utah, Tom MacArthur of New Jersey, and Rick Nolan of Minnesota.[3]
Similar bills had been previously introduced in 2009,[4] 2010, 2013,[5] and 2015[6] as the "Open College Textbook Act" and the "Affordable College Textbook Act".[7]
In 2018, Congress budgeted five million dollars for a related pilot program.[8]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Affordable College Textbook Act". Sparcopen.org. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
- ^ a b c "S.1864 - Affordable College Textbook Act: 115th Congress (2017-2018)", Congress.gov, 26 September 2017, retrieved March 14, 2019
- ^ "H.R.3840 - Affordable College Textbook Act: 115th Congress (2017-2018)", Congress.gov, 26 September 2017, retrieved March 14, 2019
- ^ "S.1714 - Open College Textbook Act of 2009: 111th Congress (2009-2010)", Congress.gov, 24 September 2009, retrieved March 14, 2019
- ^ Connor Ryan (December 9, 2013), "New bill strives to make textbooks affordable", USA Today
- ^ "Durbin pushes bill to lower college textbook costs", Chicago Tribune, October 8, 2015
- ^ "Fifth Time's the Charm? Congress Reintroduces College Textbook Bill", Newamerica.org, Washington DC: New America, September 27, 2017
- ^ Danielle Douglas-Gabriel (May 8, 2018), "Free textbooks? Federal government is on track with a pilot program", The Washington Post
Further reading[edit]
- Nicole A. Nguyen (2010). "Not All Textbooks Are Created Equal: Copyright, Fair Use, and Open Access in the Open College Textbook Act of 2010". DePaul Journal of Art, Technology & Intellectual Property Law. 21. Chicago: DePaul University College of Law. ISSN 1061-0553.
External links[edit]
- 2019-2020 Senate Bill 1036 and House Resolution 2107 at Congress.gov.
- 2017-2018 Senate Bill 1864 and House Resolution 3840 tracker at GovTrack