STATE OF NEW YORK
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6804
IN SENATE
February 22, 2006
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Introduced by Sens. LAVALLE, MALTESE, PADAVAN, SPANO, TRUNZO -- read
twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the
Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to enacting the "textbook
pricing and access act"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
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Section 1. Legislative intent. It is the policy of the state that any
institution of higher education receiving money from the state shall
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.
§ 2. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the
"textbook pricing and access act".
§ 3. The education law is amended by adding a new article 15-C to read
as follows:
ARTICLE 15-C
TEXTBOOK PRICING AND ACCESS ACT
Section 720. Definitions.
721. Textbook bundling; publisher disclosure.
722. Faculty specificity for textbooks.
723. Notice to purchase.
724. Policies addressing textbook sales and bookstores.
§ 720. Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms shall
have the following meanings:
1. "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.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15073-01-6
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2. "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 education located within the state.
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3. "Institution of higher education" means any institution of higher
education, recognized and approved by the regents of the university of
the state of New York, which provides a course of study leading to the
granting of a post-secondary degree or diploma.
4. "Publisher" means any publishing house, publishing firm, or
publishing company that publishes printed material.
5. "Required textbook" means any textbook that is required reading for
a course, as determined by the faculty member charged with teaching that
course.
6. "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.
§ 721. Textbook bundling; publisher disclosure. 1. No institution of
higher education shall have business dealings relating to the sale of
textbooks with any publisher that is in violation of the provisions of
this article.
2. Any publisher engaging in a discussion relating to the sale of any
textbook with any faculty member at an institution of higher education
shall disclose to the faculty member, in writing, the price of all textbooks presented to the faculty member at the time of the offering.
3. 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 shall disclose to the faculty member, in writing, the
price of all supplemental learning materials at the time of the offering.
4. Any publisher engaging in a discussion with a faculty member of an
institution of higher education 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.
§ 722. Faculty specificity for textbooks. 1. Any faculty member or
entity in charge of selecting textbooks for courses taught at an institution of higher education shall provide verifiable written or electronic documentation 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. Textbooks sold
by a publisher or college bookstore shall be sold in the same manner as
ordered by such faculty member, and shall only be sold in bundled form
if such faculty member has ordered such textbooks to be sold in that
manner.
2. Any faculty member or entity charged with selecting textbooks for
courses shall 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 set forth in this article shall prohibit a
faculty member from requiring the most recent edition of a textbook.
§ 723. Notice to purchase. All college bookstores shall 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
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college bookstore shall publish the listing on its internet web site or,
if no web site exists, shall post the listing in writing in a non-res-
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tricted area at the college bookstore.
§ 724. Policies addressing textbook sales and bookstores. 1. No
employee at an institution of higher education shall demand or receive
any payment, loan, subscription, advance, deposit of money, services or
anything, present or promised, as an inducement for requiring students
to purchase a specific textbook required for coursework or instruction;
with the exception that the employee may receive: (a) sample copies,
instructor's copies, or instructional material, not to be sold; and (b)
royalties or other compensation from sales of textbooks that include
such instructor's own writing or work.
2. (a) The governing board of any institution of higher education
shall implement procedures for making available to students in a central
location and in a standard format on the relevant institutional website,
listings of textbooks required or assigned for particular courses at the
institution.
(b) The listings of those required or assigned textbooks for each
particular course shall include the international standard book number
along with other relevant information.
(c) Institutions of higher education maintaining a bookstore supported
by auxiliary services or operated by a private contractor shall post the
listings of such textbooks for order and subsequent student purchase,
when the relevant instructor or academic department identifies the
required textbooks.
§ 4. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.
NEW YORK STATE SENATE
INTRODUCER'S MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT
submitted in accordance with Senate Rule VI. Sec 1
BILL NUMBER: S6804
SPONSOR: LAVALLE
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to enacting the "textbook
pricing and access act"
PURPOSE:
To ensure that students of higher education in New York State have
better access to affordable textbooks.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Sections 2, 3 and 4 outline the responsibility of the publisher to
disclose to campus faculty members the costs of books; including textbooks, supplemental materials, and bundled materials.
722 outlines the responsibility of faculty members to provide publishers
with specificity regarding orders of textbooks and other materials in
verifiable form. Those orders shall be sold by the publishers and book-
stores in such ordered form.
Faculty members shall also inform the publisher or bookstore of the
earliest edition of a textbook that students can purchase.
723 outlines that bookstores shall provide a listing through web sites
and/or postings in non-restricted areas of those materials ordered, with
reasonable expediency, after the order has been placed, so as to give
students ample time to purchase materials.
724 outlines policies which address textbook sales and bookstores,
including prohibiting employees of higher learning institutions from
receiving any compensation for requiring students to purchase certain
materials, so as to not be influenced by publishers.
The governing board of any institution of higher education shall also
implement ways to provide students with information regarding their
required textbooks, including the ISBN (international standard book
number) and listings of required materials.
EXISTING LAW:
None.
JUSTIFICATION:
The average cost of textbooks per student enrolled in a four year
college in 2003-04 was $898.00 (US Government Accountability Office).
Some estimates suggest that the practice of book bundling costs students
30% more than that of "a la carte" purchasing. New York State understands that textbooks are an important part of higher learning. Practices regarding the sale of these materials to students must be fair and
balanced. With the introduction of this legislation, students can see
access at the bookstore as well as in the classroom.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first day of July next succeeding the
date on which it shall have become a law.