According to Ars Technica, the battle for the right to repair gained a significant victory on Friday, when New York state passed a bill requiring digital device makers, such as laptop and smartphone manufacturers, to make diagnostic and repair information available to customers and independent repair shops.
The bill, which was introduced in April 2021, passed the senate on June 1 and passed assembly on Friday. The bill enacts the Digital Fair Repair Act. Governor Kathy Hochul must sign the bill before it becomes law, but advocates predict no problems there. It will take effect a year after it becomes law, Engadget and Ars Technica reported.
The bill specifically excludes medical equipment, home appliances, agricultural and off-road equipment, and public safety communications equipment. The bill also excludes motor vehicles.
Companies selling covered electronic items in New York will be required to offer knowledge, software, tools, and parts to individuals and independent repair shops so that they can repair personal devices on their own. According to iFixit, this will be implemented by 2023.
Advantages of the Implementation of the New Bill
The bill effectively asserted that it will protect consumers from monopolistic tactics of digital electronics makers caused by the withholding of repair and diagnostic information. As a result, users were forced to rely on product manufacturers and authorized repair providers.
Assemblymember Patricia Fahy pointed out that the Digital Fair Repair Act will also benefit the environment greatly as it reduces thousands of tons of e-waste products every year.
The Digital Fair Repair Act puts consumers first, levels the playing field for independent repair shops, and reduces our e-waste footprint on the environment. By requiring digital electronics manufacturers to allow access to critical information and parts required by independent, local repair shops to complete repairs on most products, this legislation ends what is a monopoly on the repair market by corporate actors and incentivizes competition within the industry. At the same time, we'd also help to reduce the 655,000 tons of toxic e-waste produced typically discarded in a single calendar year here in New York State.
New York Is Not the Only State Which Passed Similar Bill
IGN mentioned that although New York is not the first state in the US to pass legislation, the legislation passed Friday covers a wide range of electronics. States such as Massachusetts and Colorado, on the other hand, have passed laws focusing on the right to repair. T
he legislation, however, was precise in terms of the kind of repair rights offered and did not directly target electronics that most people own and use on a regular basis, such as a smartphone.
What Does the Passing of Digital Fair Repair Act Entail to Other Places?
Meanwhile, iFixit claimed that this law should also help people living outside of New York. When France passed its repairability labeling law last year, we saw manufacturers, for the first time, make repair manuals available online for free.
Given that creating a state-restricted website is more difficult than just making documentation and software open to everyone, Kyle Wiens of iFixit anticipates that many manufacturers will respond to this rule by making those materials public.
