Members of Arizona’s congressional delegation helped pass a comprehensive higher education reform bill that included policies championed by Arizona PIRG.

If approved by the Senate, the College Opportunity and Affordability Act will help students and their parents find better deals on expensive textbooks. Under the bill, publishers would provide the price of textbooks when they market them to faculty, and sell their textbooks “unbundled” from costly workbooks and CD-ROMS. Schools would provide book lists earlier to allow students and parents to shop around. The bill also requires private lenders to clearly disclose the rates and terms of student loans, and requires lenders and colleges to notify students about their options to borrow more affordable federal student loans.