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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 8, 2004

SCHUMER REVEALS LOCAL COLLEGE TEXTBOOK PRICES ARE SKYROCKETING - AND PROPOSES NEW $1,000 TAX DEDUCTION TO HELP COVER COST

New Schumer study finds average freshman or sophomore will pay $922 for books this year – including $935 at SUNY Cortland and $846 at SU – and SUNY/CUNY students pay more per class for books than students at private schools
41% textbook price increase is more than double the price increase for other books

Schumer proposes three-point plan for US Education Department to push schools to reduce textbook costs for students

US Senator Charles E. Schumer today released a new study showing that undergraduates at New York colleges and universities are confronting skyrocketing costs for textbooks this year – and proposed making up to $1,000 of textbook costs tax deductible to help lower the overall cost of higher education for working families. The Schumer study found that the average New York freshman or sophomore is forced to pay $922 for textbooks this year – which is up approximately 41 percent since 1998. The study also found that students at public colleges and universities in New York pay more on average for required textbooks than students at private schools – $104 per class for CUNY and SUNY schools compared to $101 per class at private schools.

"In today's America, getting a college degree is as vital as having air to breathe. But with costs going up as much as they have, the cost of getting that degree is backbreaking and it's only getting worse. After they pay the tuition, parents and students are getting slapped with shockingly high costs for textbooks in class after class, at school after school," said Schumer, whose older daughter began her second year of college this month.

Schumer's office surveyed 150 courses that a typical full-time freshman or sophomore will take this year at 20 colleges and universities across New York State. Schumer found that the average cost of required textbooks for these classes totaled $922, assuming that the typical student takes four courses during the first semester and five courses during the next semester.

Schumer found that while public schools (State University of New York - SUNY) charge students significantly less for tuition than private schools like Syracuse University, students there actually pay slightly more on average for required books. Schumer found that the average cost for books for each class examined at CUNY and SUNY schools was $103.98, which is $3.06 more than the $100.92 average cost of required texts at private colleges and universities

Schumer's study revealed the following prices for Central New York schools:
• The average textbook at Le Moyne costs approximately $94.97, meaning the average student will spend an estimated $854.73 per year on textbooks for nine courses over two semesters.
• The average textbook at SUNY Oswego costs approximately $86.08, meaning the average student will spend an estimated $774.72 per year on textbooks for nine courses over two semesters.
• The average textbook at SUNY Cortland costs approximately $103.95, meaning the average student will spend an estimated $935.55 per year on textbooks for nine courses over two semesters.
• The average textbook at Syracuse University costs approximately $94.00, meaning the average student will spend an estimated $846 per year on textbooks for nine courses over two semesters.

Schumer said that textbook prices have increased sharply in recent years. According to the National Association of College Stores, the wholesale price of college textbooks has gone up 41 percent since 1998, which is more than double the 20 percentage increase in the price of ordinary books over the same period. This wholesale price is the cost set by textbook publishers and does not represent an increase by college bookstores. (The average annual increase was 5.9 percent for college texts, compared to an average annual increase of 3.1 percent for other books.)

To help students and parents deal with skyrocketing textbook costs, Schumer today proposed letting them deduct up to $1,000 for the cost of textbooks from their federal income taxes. This new tax deduction is modeled on the new federal College Tuition Tax Dedication, which was originally part of Schumer's Make College Affordable Act. In April 2003, New Yorkers were able to deduct up to $3,000 in college tuition costs on their federal taxes for the first time. This tuition tax deduction will increase to $4,000 in the year 2004.

Schumer also urged the US Department of Education to work with schools and book publishers to find incentives to lower book costs for students. Specifically, Schumer proposed that schools:

• Guarantee textbooks are available for free in libraries – most schools make at least some required texts available in the reserved sections of the school libraries so students can do their reading without having to buy expensive texts. With higher textbook prices forcing more students to rely on libraries, Schumer urged the Department of Education to work with schools to guarantee that all required reading and textbooks are available from campus libraries – and there are enough copies for students to have a reasonable expectation of completing their reading.

• Ensure students can buy only the texts they need for classes without being forced to purchase unneeded extras as part of a "bundle." Often, students can find cheaper alternatives for some of the required texts on websites like www.amazon.com, www.half.com, or www.dogears.net. Unfortunately, because some required books are only sold "bundled" in a single package with other books, study guides, CD-ROMs, or other supplements, students are forced to purchase the entire package and can't comparison shop for individual pieces. Schumer urged the Department of Education to encourage schools to sell materials separately, and urged publishers to sell them separately, so students can bargain-shop for some texts and purchase others new.

• Guard against professors who take advantage of students by assigning books they wrote. One of college students' biggest complaints about paying for college textbooks is when they are forced by a professor to purchase a book written by that professor or one of his colleagues. But Schumer noted that New York colleges and universities boast many scholars who are the experts in their fields and who have written defining works in the subjects they teach – making their books the best choices for required reading. Rather than prohibit professors from assigning works they wrote, Schumer urged the Department of Education to set up a panel to examine egregious cases in which professors appear to be taking advantage of students in this way. Schumer noted that legislation proposing a similar panel for the California State University System has been proposed in the California Senate.

Schumer said that students and their parents are already getting slammed with huge tuition increases this year, and the increasing cost of textbooks is putting the cost of college even further out of reach for middle-class New Yorkers. In the spring, as high school seniors and their parents across New York were deciding which college or university to attend, Schumer released a study of over 130 colleges and universities across the state that showed tuition costs in New York went up 319 % over the last 20 years. On average, tuition rose from $3,117 to $13,051 in 2002 in New York. As a comparison, the increase in inflation (as shown by the Consumer Price Index) during the same period was 86%.

"For the first time ever, this proposal would let parents or students deduct the cost of their books from their taxes. This means real dollars and real savings for middle class families who have to beg and borrow to send their kids to college," Schumer said.

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