HR1161 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1161 LRB098 21547 GRL 60170 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, According to the College Board, the average student at a 4-year university spent an estimated $1,222 per year on college books and supplies; and

WHEREAS, According to the National Association of College Stores, the gross margin on new college textbooks was 25.6% in 2012; and

WHEREAS, The United States Government Accountability Office has found that college textbook prices have risen at twice the rate of annual inflation over the last 2 decades and that new textbook prices increased 82% over the last decade; and

WHEREAS, Real median annual household income has decreased by $5,000 since 2000; and

WHEREAS, An open source material project that would make high-quality educational materials freely available to the general public would reduce college textbook costs and increase accessibility to such education materials; and

WHEREAS, College-level open source course work materials in math, physics, and chemistry represent a high-priority first step in this area; and

WHEREAS, The scientific and technical workforce at federal agencies, national laboratories, and federally-funded research and development centers could make a valuable contribution to this effort; and

WHEREAS, A federal oversight role in the creation and maintenance of standard, publicly-vetted textbooks is desirable to ensure that intellectual property is respected and that public standards for quality, educational effectiveness, and scientific accuracy are maintained; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the members of the United States House of Representatives to pass H.R. 4455, the Learning Opportunities With Creation of Open Source Textbooks (LOW COST) Act of 2014; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to the members of the Illinois congressional delegation.