Affordable College Textbook Act

# Affordable College Textbook Act Summary **What the bill does:** The Affordable College Textbook Act would create a federal grant program to help colleges and universities adopt "open textbooks"—free educational materials that students can legally use, share, and modify without paying traditional copyright fees. The Department of Education would distribute grants to schools or states to support projects expanding open textbook use. Additionally, the Government Accountability Office would be required to study and report on college textbook costs within three years. **Who it affects:** College and university students and administrators would be the primary beneficiaries, as open textbooks could significantly reduce the cost of required course materials. Publishers of traditional textbooks might face increased competition.

Taxpayers would fund the grant program through federal education spending. **Current status:** The bill is currently in committee (H.R. 1886, 119th Congress), meaning it has been introduced but not yet voted on by the full House. A similar program called the Open Textbooks Pilot program has already received federal funding since 2018, demonstrating that some version of this approach is already being tested. The bill would make this effort permanent and expand it through statutory authority rather than temporary appropriations.