Dax Tate
Former Zero Waste Campaign Associate, WashPIRG
Right to Repair measure, which got farther than ever before in Washington, stalls in Senate
Media Contacts
Washingtonians will have to wait another year for reforms which grant them the ability to fix modern electronics. The Fair Repair Act (HB 1392) failed to clear the Senate Committee on Environment, Energy and Technology before the March 29 cutoff, ending its progress through the legislature.
Earlier in March, the Washington State House passed the pro-repair reforms, the first time a Right to Repair measure has ever gotten a full chamber vote in the state. Unfortunately, the Fair Repair Act was not brought to a vote in the Senate Committee on Environment, Energy and Technology. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Mia Gregerson, would have required manufacturers to provide consumers and independent repair shops with the parts, tools, and information necessary to repair personal electronic devices including laptops and smartphones.
Manufacturers frequently refuse to sell these parts or tools, or provide important manuals or other information needed to fix devices. When devices can’t be fixed, consumers are forced to replace or go without them – which raises costs for consumers and drives rising issues around electronic waste.
In response, WashPIRG Zero Waste Associate Dax Tate released the following statement:
“People want to be able to fix the devices they own. While we are disappointed that legislators won’t be advancing the Fair Repair Act this session, we are inspired by the progress that we have made and are extremely optimistic about the prospects of Right to Repair in Washington State.
“The work we accomplished this year would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of Representative Gregerson, as well as the outpouring of support from Washington’s repair shop owners, students, school board officials, environmental activists, and experts on everything from cybersecurity to intellectual property. We look forward to working with this coalition going forward, and building on the momentum Right to Repair has both nationally and here in Washington to get this done.”
