In response to skyrocketing textbook prices and in preparation for the upcoming fall semester, students have been working through the summer to pass HR4137, a bill to make textbooks more affordable for students. Already passed in the House, HR4137 could save the average student $300 a year if passed this fall. The proposal will require publishers to provide more pricing information to professors and to "unbundle" expensive packages of textbooks, CDs, workbooks, and web tools. In another effort to keep costs low, one student group is working to create a stronger market for open education resources such as online textbooks. Members of the Student Public Interest Research Groups are working to gather signatures for an Open Textbook Statement of Intent, which asks faculty to consider using open textbooks. So far the group has collected over 1,200 signatures from faculty across the country. In the meantime, students are already saving on books by renting, buying e-books, or using free open-source textbooks. Publishers are concerned that online books can and have led to illegal downloading of copyrighted material…and less revenue for them.

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