Oregon advances textbook legislation

SALEM — Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski is expected to sign a bill that could shrink the amount of money that college students spend on textbooks.

Senate Bill 365, which was approved by the Legislature on Wednesday, is intended to free students from the burden of paying for CD-roms, workbooks and other items that are often bundled with textbooks required by their professors.

The bill would also give professors more information about the frequency of textbook updates and other cost-related factors they may consider when ordering books for their students.

Sens. Vicki Walker, D-Eugene, and Bill Morrisette, D-Springfield, co-sponsored the bill at the request of the Oregon Student Association and Oregon State Public Interest Research Group.

If professors know the costs and options when deciding which materials to require for students, they can make selections that are more affordable, Walker said.

“They care about their students and understand their debt load,” Walker said.

Surveys by OSPIRG and the OSA found that the average Oregon student spends $900 each year on textbooks.

“They’re just really expensive. And it’s money that cuts into paying for rent and food,” said Mike Filippelli, a junior at the University of Oregon who told the Register-Guard newspaper that his student loans already total $22,000.

Filippelli said he has felt ripped off by publishers who charge as much as $80 to $100 for textbooks that come with CD-roms and workbooks that were never required by the professor. He said the publishers frequently put out new editions that make cheaper used books obsolete.

The bill requires publishers of college textbooks to provide professors and private and public colleges and universities with information regarding their products, including the prices and the frequency of updated editions.

The bill would also make publishers offer higher education institutions the option of ordering each component of bundled textbook packages separately, and disclose the price for textbooks purchased without bundled items such as workbooks and CD-roms.