Bill > HR1811

This bill, the Affordable College Textbook Act, aims to expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for students and improve textbook price information. The key provisions include: 1. Establishing an Open Textbook Grant Program that provides competitive grants to eligible entities (institutions of higher education, consortia of institutions, or consortia of states) to support projects that expand the use of open textbooks and achieve cost savings for students. 2. Amending the Higher Education Act to require institutions of higher education to verify and disclose more detailed information about required and recommended college textbooks and supplemental materials, including whether they are open educational resources and information about digital materials' terms and conditions. 3. Encouraging institutions of higher education to promote the consideration of open textbooks by faculty, within the principles of academic freedom. 4. Directing the Government Accountability Office to report on the implementation of the textbook price information requirements, the change in textbook costs, the factors contributing to these changes, and the extent and impact of open textbook use. The overall goal of the bill is to make higher education more affordable by increasing the use of open educational resources and improving transparency around textbook pricing and options.