CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.
A bill moving through the Legislature would require the University of Tennessee and Tennessee Board of Regents to develop policies for minimizing the costs of textbooks for students.
Sen. Roy Herron, a bill sponsor, said he hopes such policies will make a significant dent in the cost of a college student’s education.
“The enormous and sometimes outrageous cost of textbooks is a severe impediment for many lower-income and even middle-income students,” Herron, D-Dresden, said.
The bill is awaiting a vote of the full Senate. House members have approved it.
The College Board’s Annual Survey of Colleges found average costs of books and supplies for undergraduates at public institutions to be $850 for two-year public institutions and $942 for four-year public institutions.
A yearlong review by the Board of Regents, which oversees six state universities, 13 community colleges and 26 technology centers, found some costs in Tennessee to be even higher. The board found that in 2005-06, the average annual cost of textbooks for freshmen at Chattanooga State Technical Community College was $1,475.
