Right To Repair

Massachusetts voters have been at the forefront of Right to Repair. First, in 2012, voters approved a ballot measure, 87.7% to 12.3%, to ensure that independent mechanics and vehicle owners could access the same repair information as dealerships and authorized repair shops, including through a car’s diagnostic port. This measure, also passed by the Legislature, standardized the port in the car for such access, removing barriers for mechanics seeking to read error logs from a car’s computer. Massachusetts’ reforms became a broadly accepted national agreement between the independent car mechanics, led by the Auto Care Association, and major automotive manufacturers, in 2014. 

However, the agreement exempted repair data and repair functions which rely upon a wireless connection, a technology that expanded significantly in subsequent years. To address this gap, the Auto Care Association and other repair advocates ran a second ballot question. In 2020, Massachusetts voters once again voted overwhelmingly to support independent car repair. The ballot question required manufacturers to provide secure access to repair data and repair processes done through a wireless connection, and give the car owner the ability to grant access to that data to a repair shop if desired. However, enforcement has stalled. 

Automakers sued to block the law shortly after it passed, and a trial was held in June 2021. The federal judge presiding over the case, Justice Douglas Woodlock, was expected to issue a ruling in June 2022 – but delayed that ruling several times. In 2023, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) told automakers to ignore the law before reversing that advice soon after. Massachusetts car owners are still waiting to gain control over the repair data their cars transmit, though resolution might come in 2025: a new judge has taken over the case and indications are he plans to finally issue a ruling.

In New York, the Digital Fair Repair Act went into effect on December 28, 2023. The law requires original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to provide the requisite parts, tools and documentation required to repair personal electronic devices including cell phones, laptops, tablets and cameras. 

However, industry lobbyists convinced Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration to weaken the bill as it was signed into law. These additional loopholes reduce the scope of covered products, including restricting repair availability only to devices sold directly to consumers — no business-to-business transactions or devices sold under government contracts are included within the law. In addition, the law only applies to electronic devices sold after July 2023. In January 2024, shortly after the original law went into effect, state assembly member Patricia Fahy introduced a new bill to address the loopholes added by the governor, but the bill did not advance. 

Colorado has passed three different Right to Repair laws. The first law, passed in 2022, allows wheelchair users to access the parts, tools and software required to fix their motorized chairs. Next, in 2023, Gov. Jared Polis signed a law requiring manufacturers of farming equipment to provide the same materials for farmers to fix their own machinery. Most recently, in 2024, a broad Right to Repair covering most digital electronic equipment was enacted, covering personal electronics, printers, appliances, HVAC systems, music and sound equipment, IT devices, e-bikes and more. The law also includes restrictions on “parts pairing,” first championed in Oregon. Exempted devices include medical equipment, motor vehicles, construction equipment, and video game consoles. The newest law goes into effect on January 1, 2026 — when Coloradans will enjoy the broadest repair rights in the nation. 

Minnesota’s Digital Fair Repair Act went into effect on July 1, 2024 and applies to products manufactured after July 1, 2021. Most products that require digital electronic elements are covered under the law, including personal electronics, appliances, servers, industrial and commercial equipment, and more. Due to the broadness of the electronics covered under the law, Minnesotans have some of the broader digital electronic repair rights in the nation. Exempted products include offroad and recreational vehicles, video game consoles, medical devices and agricultural equipment. Advocates continue to push to add farm equipment into the covered equipment, in a push led by the Minnesota Farmers Union. 

California’s consumer device repair law requires manufacturers to provide the parts, tools and documentation necessary to repair consumer devices including personal electronics and household appliances. The law went into effect on July 1, 2024, and OEM requirements are enforced on a scale based on the price of the device. Devices that cost $50 or more and were manufactured, sold or used on or after July 2021 are covered under the law. Manufacturers must provide repair materials for products costing between $50-100 for at least 3 years after the manufacturing date of a product model or type, and provide materials for products costing more than $100 for at least seven years. The law was passed in the Assembly by a vote of 65-1, and the Senate with a vote of 30-0. 

California lawmakers followed this up in 2024 by passing a Right to Repair for powered wheelchairs. The law requires manufacturers to provide access to the parts, tools and information needed for a list of common wheelchair repairs — meaning that in cases where the repair needs are other than those listed in the law, manufacturers are not required to share repair materials. The law went into effect in January 2025.

In March 2024, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek signed the nation’s strongest Right to Repair law for consumer electronics. The law took effect on January 1, 2025, and, like other laws, requires OEMs to provide the parts, tools and information needed to fix phones, tablets, laptops, appliances and other consumer products. 

In addition, Oregon’s law is the first in the nation to restrict “parts pairing,” a practice that requires replacement parts to be “paired” to a device using a manufacturer’s proprietary software. Previously, such software would restrict new parts from working fully once installed unless it was ordered directly from the manufacturer, hindering a range of repairs, and costing the consumer more than is necessary to fix their stuff. Oregon’s reforms forbid the manufacturer from restricting a component’s features through parts pairing technology. 

In November of 2023, Maine voters overwhelmingly supported a ballot measure to enshrine automotive Right to Repair for all Maine drivers. As in Massachusetts, the measure required that all cars sold in Maine that use a wireless system share access to the repair data with car owners and their designees. The measure also requires manufacturers to standardize the way that data is accessed. In April 2024, a bill passed through one chamber of the Legislature, the Maine House of Representatives, which, if passed, would overrule the ballot measure. However, the state Senate declined to take up the bill before its legislative session ended. A commission was formed to determine next steps. 

After New York’s law became the first in the nation covering personal electronics to go into effect, PIRG found that some companies lagged behind from implementing the required changes. The companies found to be lagging behind in July are improving, releasing new service manuals as time goes on. For example, we were unable to locate repair manuals for Sony cameras in our research, but by August the manuals were later clearly posted online. 

In November, Repair.org awarded Google with the 2024 Right to Repair Advocacy Award in recognition of the company’s efforts to support right to repair initiatives in states across the country and its work to make its devices more repairable. This includes company executives testifying in support of bills in Oregon, Colorado and Pennsylvania, specifically calling attention to the issue of parts pairing. The company’s testimony outlines how Google keeps devices secure for its user without inhibiting repair. 

“Without Google’s participation, bills passed in Oregon and Colorado likely would not have included language restricting parts pairing,” noted Repair.org Executive Director Gay Gordon-Byrne.

When Right to Repair first began to emerge as an issue, Microsoft opposed the legislation, but in recent years has changed its tune. 

In response to a campaign targeting Microsoft to make pro-repair changes, Microsoft commissioned a study on the benefits of repair, as was agreed to with advocacy group As You Sow. After this analysis, Microsoft made a number of pro-repair changes, starting a project to sell parts and repair tools with iFixit, and eventually endorsing Right to Repair legislation in Washington state. Meanwhile, the company has steadily improved the repairability of its hardware products.

Apple came out in support of California’s Right to Repair bill before it passed, and spoke in support of national legislation that “balances repairability with product integrity, data security, usability, and physical safety”. The company has launched independent and DIY repair programs to create avenues for independent repair shops and individual consumers to access parts, tools and documentation needed to fix their devices. These programs have expanded and improved since first launched.  

Despite Apple’s public support for Right to Repair in California, there are some restrictions to that support. When Apple’s new programs for independent and DIY repair launched, they were critiqued as burdensome and likely to be ineffective. Though programs have improved, criticism remained focused on the way the company uses software to lock out unauthorized repair with a technology called “parts pairing.” 

Working with Google, advocates put forward new legislative language to prevent the use of parts pairing to inhibit repair. Apple objected to these provisions, lobbying against Oregon’s bill due to the inclusion of parts pairing restrictions, saying that parts pairing protects the security and safety of device owners. The bill was passed over these objections. Apple has since updated its software to allow for non-paired parts to be installed and operate.