Auditor: Textbook Prices Hit Students Hard

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California public college students and their families are having a tough time keeping up with the cost of textbooks, a new report released Tuesday says.

According to the report produced by state Auditor Elaine Howle, the retail price of 27 selected textbooks has risen by 28 percent since 2004.

The report concludes that the rising cost of textbooks "makes it more likely that some students will forgo or delay attending college."

The report also said publishers put out new editions of textbooks, even though according to deans, department chairs, and faculty members, those revisions are "often minimal and are not always warranted."

Campus bookstores are also to blame because managers often add significant markups on to textbook prices to pay for unrelated student activities, the report stated.

The auditor's report suggests students can do more to keep their budgets down by purchasing used textbooks and by buying books online.

More Resources:

• Auditor's Report