Oregon Passes Groundbreaking Right to Repair Act
Governor Tina Kotek Signs Bill into Law
In a significant move for consumer rights, Oregon governor Tina Kotek signed the state’s Right to Repair Act into law on Monday. The legislation, which surpasses similar laws in New York, California, and Minnesota, mandates that manufacturers provide individuals and repair shops with the same parts, tools, and documentation they give to their own repair teams.
Banning Parts Pairing and Serialization
Oregon’s SB 1596 goes a step further by prohibiting companies from implementing parts pairing or serialization, which requires parts to be verified through encrypted software checks before functioning. This makes Oregon the first state to target this practice. State senator Janeen Sollman and representative Courtney Neron, both Democrats, championed the bill in the state legislature.
“By eliminating manufacturer restrictions, the Right to Repair will make it easier for Oregonians to keep their personal electronics running. That will conserve precious natural resources and prevent waste. It’s a refreshing alternative to a ‘throwaway’ system that treats everything as disposable.”
– Charlie Fisher, director of Oregon’s chapter of the Public Interest Research Group, in a statement.
Limitations and Exemptions
While groundbreaking, Oregon’s law has some limitations. There is no set number of years for manufacturers to support devices with repair support, and the parts pairing ban only applies to devices sold in 2025 and later. The law also exempts certain electronics and devices, such as video game consoles, medical devices, HVAC systems, motor vehicles, and electric toothbrushes.
Apple’s Opposition and Changing Stance
Apple opposed the Oregon repair bill due to its parts-pairing ban. John Perry, a senior manager for secure design at Apple, testified that the pairing restriction would compromise the security, safety, and privacy of Oregonians by forcing manufacturers to allow the use of parts of unknown origin in consumer devices. However, Apple surprised many by supporting California’s repair bill in 2023, albeit after pushing for repair providers to disclose the use of “non-genuine or used” components and prohibiting them from disabling security features.
Impact on Millions of Consumers
According to Consumer Reports, which lobbied and testified in support of Oregon’s bill, the repair laws passed in four states now cover nearly 70 million people, marking a significant victory for consumer rights and environmental sustainability.
This story originally appeared on Ars Technica.
1 Comment
Finally, Oregon gives power back to the people with a right-to-repair law! Who’s next