New Washington State Bill Seeks to Increase OER Use and Development | EdTech Magazine

"n an effort to expand the potential of OER by creating options, the House Higher Education Committee in the state of Washington has proposed a bill that would distribute grants to six universities, Campus Technology reports.

'The legislature finds that the cost of textbooks is a barrier to higher education for many students,' reads the bill proposal. 'It is the intent of the legislature to create a pilot grant program to reduce costs for college students by supporting the public, four-year institutions of higher education in promoting, adopting, and creating open educational resources.'

The News Tribune reports that House Bill 1768, which is still awaiting a hearing, would help these universities fund the salary of an OER liaison in the campus library to ensure robust OER options are available or help the universities contract with an OER library.

The bill is being spearheaded by State Rep. Melanie Stambaugh, who had success in passing similar OER legislation two years ago for Eastern Washington University, The News Tribune reports.

'It’s been welcomed by all institutions, and they’re very excited to put in their grant applications to receive the dollars to help their students,' says Stambaugh in the article."