College Textbook Increases Far Outpace Inflation

Students headed to college this fall will need to be prepared to spend anywhere from 26 to 72 percent of their tuition and fee costs for textbooks, depending on the type of college they attend. A study released by the Government Accountability Office reports that textbook prices have increased 186 percent since 1986, a rate that far outpaces the inflation rate of 72 percent. According to the report, the reason behind the increase is that the college textbook has evolved into a "package" that includes text, colorful supplements and software.

The Association of American Publishers questions the findings in the report, claiming some of the data "unfairly factored in costs for .... supplies that have nothing to do with textbooks."

Learn more about the study in the complete article on the MSNBC Web site.