Legislative bill that would increase access to academic journals is pending in U.S. Congress

University of Colorado: Initiative is advocating for a legislative bill that, if passed by Congress, would make academic journals more accessible in the sense that tax-funded research shouldn’t be bought back by students. In 2011, CU library spent $7.5 million on serials.

Essentially, the legislation would expand the National Institutes of Health public access policy — which already guarantees that research funded by the NIH will be accessible to the public — to additional agencies, including departments of defense, agriculture, education, commerce, health and human services, homeland security and transportation. It would also apply to the Environmental Protection Agency, NASA and the National Science Foundation.