Nathan Proctor
Senior Director, Campaign for the Right to Repair, PIRG
Statement: Oregon governor signs strongest Right to Repair law to date
Media Contacts
Newly signed law will make it easier for Oregonians to repair consumer electronics
SALEM, Ore. — On Wednesday, Gov. Tina Kotek signed Oregon’s Right to Repair bill into law, making Oregon the fourth state to enact Right to Repair rules for consumer electronics, including appliances, laptops and cell phones.
The legislation requires manufacturers to make repair more accessible by providing open access to the parts, tools and information used to fix devices, which manufacturers are currently restricting to “authorized” service centers. Oregon’s bill is the first in the nation to ban manufacturers from using software to prevent technicians from fully installing spare parts, a practice called “parts pairing.”
PIRG Right to Repair Campaign Senior Director Nathan Proctor made the following statement:
“This is cause for celebration. Electronic waste is growing five times faster than our electronics recycling capacity, according to last week’s United Nations Global E-Waste Monitor report. We need to cut down the insane cycle of churning through personal electronics — and that starts by empowering repair. Oregon’s nation-leading Right to Repair law will keep devices working and off the scrap heap.
“Thank you to Gov. Kotek for signing this law, and bringing these protections to Oregon consumers. Oregonians are lucky to have champions for their rights and the environment like Sen. Janeen Sollman, who worked tirelessly, and in the face of intense manufacturer opposition, to pass this legislation.
“Our system of short-lived and quickly-tossed electronics is broken, but I believe that when things are broken, you fix them. Today is a milestone in our efforts to repair our relationship with electronics.”