HB4867 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 16790 MKM 52061 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB4867

Introduced 01/19/06, by Rep. Naomi D. Jakobsson

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Textbook Pricing and Access Act. Requires publishers of textbooks to make certain price disclosures to faculty members at institutions of higher learning with whom the publisher is in discussion. Requires faculty members to provide a written statement to each publisher or college bookstore placing an order for textbooks that details (i) the textbook required for the faculty member's course and (ii) the earliest edition of the textbook that may be purchased for a particular course. Restricts the manner in which textbooks and supplemental learning materials may be bundled by the publisher or college bookstore. Requires a college bookstore to make available a listing of all textbooks and supplemental learning materials required for courses taught during each term and to post that listing on its web site or in a non-restricted area at the college bookstore. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Textbook Pricing and Access Act.

Section 2. Purpose and intent. It is the policy of the State of Illinois that any institution of higher learning receiving money from the State must work to find ways to decrease the cost of textbooks. The sharp increase in the price of textbooks along with new and unseemly packaging tactics threaten the opportunity for some to have a chance at higher education and put an even greater burden on the families of students to financially support their loved ones. The purpose of this Act is to help ensure that every student taking part in higher education is offered better access to affordable textbooks.

Section 5. Definitions.

"Bundled" means a textbook and any other learning material, including, but not limited to, workbooks, dictionaries, cd-roms, or books, packaged together to be sold for one price.

"College bookstore" means any store that is in the business of selling textbooks on the campus of or in the near vicinity of an institution of higher learning in Illinois.

"Institution of higher learning" means the term as it is defined in Section 10 of the Higher Education Student Assistance Act.

"Publisher" means any publishing house, publishing firm, or publishing company that publishes printed material.

"Required textbook" means any textbook that is required reading for a course, as determined by the faculty member charged with teaching that course.

"Supplemental learning material" means learning materials that supplement the primary textbook, that come in the form of another book, a workbook, or a cd-rom, and that can be used by a faculty member or a student during the teaching of a course.

Section 10. Textbook bundling; publisher disclosure.

(a) No institution of higher learning shall have business dealings relating to the sale of textbooks with any publisher that is in violation of this Act.

(b) Any publisher engaging in a discussion relating to the sale of any textbook with any faculty member at an institution of higher learning must disclose to the faculty member, in writing, the price of all textbooks presented to the faculty member at the time of the offering.

(c) Any publisher engaging in a discussion relating to the sale of any supplemental learning materials with a faculty member at an institution of higher learning must disclose to the faculty member, in writing, the price of all supplemental learning materials at the time of the offering.

(d) Any publisher engaging in a discussion with a faculty member of an institution of higher learning relating to the sale of any supplemental learning materials that are offered to be bundled with a textbook shall disclose to the faculty member, in writing, the total price of the bundled materials to the faculty member at the time of the offering.

Section 15. Faculty specificity for textbooks.

(a) Any faculty member or entity in charge of selecting textbooks for courses taught at an institution of higher learning must provide a written statement to each publisher or college bookstore placing an order for textbooks, detailing the textbooks or supplemental learning materials that are required for each course and any textbooks or supplementary learning materials that are recommended for the course.

(b) Any faculty member or entity charged with selecting textbooks for courses must provide a written statement to the publisher or college bookstore placing the order for textbooks, indicating the earliest edition of any required textbook that may be purchased by a student for a particular course. Nothing in this Act shall prohibit a faculty member from requiring the most recent edition of a textbook.

Section 20. Bundling restrictions.

(a) A publisher may bundle together a required textbook and any other required textbook or required supplemental learning material.

(b) Any college bookstore or faculty member that places an order with a publisher for any required textbook or required supplemental learning material bundled with any textbook or supplemental learning material that is not required must also order the required textbook in unbundled form. The college bookstore or faculty member must order at least the same quantity of unbundled textbooks as it orders of the same textbook in a bundled form, except that if, after an initial shipment of bundled and unbundled textbooks are made to a college bookstore, it is determined by both the publisher and the college bookstore that there is a disproportionate need for either bundled or unbundled textbooks, the requirement for equal quantity does not apply.

Section 25. Notice to purchase. All college bookstores must make available, with reasonable expediency after the information becomes available, a listing of all textbooks and supplemental learning materials that are required for courses taught during each term. The list shall include the International Standard Book Number for each textbook. The college bookstore shall publish the listing on its Internet web site or, if no web site exists, must post the listing in writing in a non-restricted area at the college bookstore.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.