81R4172 KEL-D
By: Vo H.B. No. 1099
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to measures to increase the affordability of textbooks
used for courses at public institutions of higher education.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 51, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter I to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER I. TEXTBOOKS
Sec. 51.451. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Coordinating board" means the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board.
(2) "Custom textbook" means a textbook that is
compiled by a textbook publisher at the direction of a faculty
member or other person in charge of selecting course materials at an
institution of higher education and that may include items such as
selections from original instructor materials, previously
copyrighted publisher materials, copyrighted third-party works, or
elements unique to a specific institution.
(3) "Faculty member" has the meaning assigned by
Section 51.917.
(4) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning
assigned by Section 61.003.
(5) "Supplemental material," with respect to a
textbook, means instructional material developed to accompany the
textbook, including printed materials, computer disks, website
access, and electronically distributed materials, other than
instructional material that is part of an integrated textbook.
(6) "Textbook" means a book published primarily for
instruction in connection with a particular course or courses
offered to postsecondary students by an institution of higher
education. The term includes any edition of a textbook or set of
textbooks and any item considered supplemental specifically to the
textbook, regardless of whether the textbook and supplemental item
are sold together or separately.
(7) "Textbook bundle" means a textbook offered for
sale, at a single price, in combination with other instructional
material such as additional printed material, a computer disk,
website access, or electronically distributed material. The term
does not include a textbook that is combined with other
instructional material, all of which is:
(A) required to be offered for sale with or as
part of the textbook, according to a third-party contractual
agreement; or
(B) interrelated with the content of the textbook
to such a degree that any separation of the material from the
textbook would render the textbook unusable for its intended
purpose.
(8) "University-affiliated bookstore" means a
bookstore that:
(A) sells textbooks for courses offered to
postsecondary students by an institution of higher education,
regardless of whether the bookstore is located on the campus of the
institution; and
(B) is operated by or with the approval of the
institution through ownership, a management agreement, a lease or
rental agreement, or otherwise.
Sec. 51.452. TEXTBOOK PUBLISHERS: AVAILABILITY OF
INFORMATION CONCERNING TEXTBOOK PRICES, REVISIONS, AND COPYRIGHTS.
(a) When a textbook publisher provides information regarding a
textbook or supplemental material to a faculty member or other
person in charge of selecting course materials at an institution of
higher education, the publisher shall also provide to the faculty
member or other person written information that includes:
(1) the price at which the publisher will make the
textbook or supplemental material, and any textbook bundles
containing the textbook or supplemental material, available to a
university-affiliated bookstore or other bookstore that generally
serves the students of the institution and, if applicable, to the
faculty member, students, and the public;
(2) the history of any substantial revisions to the
textbook or supplemental material, including the addition of new
chapters, new material covering additional time periods, new
themes, or new subject matter;
(3) the copyright dates of the current and three
preceding editions of the textbook and the length of time the
publisher expects the current edition to remain on the market;
(4) information as to whether the textbook or
supplemental material is available in other formats, such as a
paperback or unbound version; and
(5) the price at which the publisher will make the
textbook or supplemental material in any alternative format
available to a bookstore described by Subdivision (1) and, if
applicable, to the faculty member, students, and the public.
(b) A textbook publisher shall make the information
required by Subsection (a) available to the faculty member or other
person:
(1) when the faculty member or other person orders or
requests a copy of the textbook or supplemental material; and
(2) when the publisher provides a promotional or desk
copy of the textbook or material to the faculty member or other
person.
(c) A textbook publisher shall comply with this section with
respect to a custom textbook or a special edition of a textbook only
to the extent reasonably practicable.
Sec. 51.453. TEXTBOOK BUNDLES. A textbook publisher that
offers a textbook bundle for sale directly to students enrolled at
an institution of higher education or to faculty members of that
institution or, for resale purposes, to a university-affiliated
bookstore or other bookstore that generally serves students and
faculty members of the institution shall also offer for sale to the
faculty members, students, or bookstore, as applicable, each
individual item of instructional material as a separate, unbundled
item that is separately priced.
SECTION 2. Subchapter I, Chapter 51, Education Code, as
added by this Act, applies beginning with the 2010 fall semester.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.