Right-to-Repair Laws Gain Political Momentum Across America

"California, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Connecticut, Oregon and Washington have all passed comprehensive right-to-repair regulations," reports CNBC, "covering everything from consumer electronics and farm equipment to wheelchairs and automobiles."

And the consumer movement "continues to gain political momentum" across America... As of this year, advocates are tracking 57 right-to-repair bills across 22 states. In Maine, the state senate just advanced a bill that would bring the right to repair to electronics in the state. Texas's new right-to-repair law kicks in on Sept. 1 and covers phones, laptops, and tablets, but excludes medical and farm equipment, and game consoles.... [U.S.] Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) are unlikely political bedfellows but have joined together to sponsor the REPAIR Act... The REPAIR Act would require automakers to give vehicle owners, independent repair shops, and aftermarket manufacturers secure access to vehicle repair and maintenance data, preventing manufacturers from funneling consumers into their own exclusive and more expensive dealership repair networks... Hawley criticized big corporations in his arguments in favor of right-to-repair legislation.

"Big corporations have a history of gatekeeping basic information that belongs to car owners, effectively forcing consumers to pay a fixed price whenever their car is in the shop," Hawley told CNBC. "The bipartisan REPAIR Act would end corporations' control over diagnostics and service information and give consumers the right to repair their own equipment at a price most feasible for them." The largest small business lobby in the U.S., the NFIB, says 89% of its members support right-to-repair legislation, making it a top legislative priority for 2026.

Beware also "proponents" co-opting shifting tides

[sinkskinkshrieks]

Look at their actions and their interests.

Re:

[burtosis]

This is a primary push behind banning 3D printers and CNC equipment becoming cheap and affordable. Companies that charge hundreds of dollars for cheap plastic parts are very concerned when you can just print it instead for a dollar of filament.

But they might wreck it.....

[thephydes]

One of the counter arguments - that I don't agree with by the way - is that if people are allowed to even try to repair stuff that they will "wreck it". My response is that if they do, that's on them as the "right to repair" means that it is repairable, not that anyone and everyone can do it.

Re:

[burtosis]

People have been allowed to work on multi ton vehicles that reach speeds of a hundred miles an hour with far more kinetic energy than any bullet for a century now without any real issue. The push to make repair illegal is the same as the push to make everything a subscription, unbridled corporate greed and the erosion of rights that brings.

If you bought, you should be able to repair it

[bsdetector101]

Total BS !!!

Different states

[wpiman]

In theory I am not opposed to this, but 50 states stitching their own cobweb of laws together on this is going to be impossible to navigate. Only the lawyers will win. This should be part of the UCC.

Kills start ups and adds to waste

[FeelGood314]

Most large companies suck at innovating. They don't get crushed by smaller companies mainly because small companies don't have the money to navigate regulations and large supply chains. I might be able to build a better widget and have a contract manufacturer make it for less than the large established companies because I'm using newer cheaper parts that use less power. What I can't do is sell in volume around the world because I can't meet the explicit and implicit regulations. Meeting the explicit reg