Oregon is the fourth state to pass a bill giving consumers the right to fix their own appliances and gadgets, reports The Oregonian. The right to repair is building steam.
The bill passed the Oregon Senate last month 25-5 and the House on Monday 42-13. It now awaits Gov. Tina Kotek's signature. The governor hasn't indicated whether she supports the bill, which is typical. The governor rarely takes position on bills before they pass the Legislature.
Karl Bode notes that Apple lobbied to kill the bill, despite having ultimately supported California's, whereas Google supported both.
The bill, which passed the Oregon Senate last month 25-5 and the House on Monday 42-13, is a bit more robust than the versions passed in earlier states. Among other things, the bill requires that device manufacturers make parts, tools and repair manuals available to consumers and third-party repair shops on "fair and reasonable terms."
But it also takes aim at "parts pairing," or the practice of preventing you from replacing device parts without the approval of a company or its restrictive software. Apple, which routinely uses this practice to try and monopolize repair, lobbied extensively against the Oregon bill. As usual, under the (false) claim that eliminating parts pairing would put public safety and security at risk:
New York also passed a right-to-repair bill, but it was heavily watered down after governor Kathy Hochul, favoring industry lobbyists, refused to sign it.
Here's details of Oregon's Senate Bill 1596:
– A requirement that consumer electronics manufacturers to make parts, tools and repair manuals available to consumers and third-party repair ships on "fair and reasonable terms."
– A prohibition on tech companies blocking third-party components that are an "otherwise functional replacement" for manufacturers' parts. Manufacturers also may not inhibit devices' performance if consumers install third-party parts, or send "misleading alerts or warnings."
– Penalties of up to $1,000 a day for violators, beginning July 1, 2027. The bill applies to consumer electronics equipment manufactured since July 1, 2015, or cell phones manufactured after July 1, 2021.
Previously: Consumer rights organizations petition FTC for right-to-repair legislation
