REGIONAL- Most everyone knows a tinkerer, someone who for the sheer challenge or pursuit of savings loves diving into broken things to try to repair them. And when it comes to a wide array of products that rely on digital electronics to function, the Minnesota Legislature has given both amateur hobbyists and professional independent repair shops a new tool for their toolboxes – the nation’s most comprehensive right-to-repair law, the Digital Fair Repair Act.
Right-to-repair is a movement that has grown right along with technology as manufacturers of electronic equipment such as smartphones, tablets, televisions, washing machines, refrigerators, smart home devices, smart watches, electronic toys, small appliances and more have made it increasingly more difficult for consumers to get those products repaired outside of a manufacturer’s authorized shop.
Consumers and independent repair shops have been unable to get needed software and code, documentation, parts, and tools from manufacturers who have deemed them proprietary. The impact on consumers seeking needed repairs has been more burdensome in Greater Minnesota, where manufacturer-authorized repair shops are far scarcer than in the state’s metropolitan areas. And in some instances, manufacturers have refused to repair products at all, forcing consumers to throw them away and buy new ones.
But beginning July 1, manufacturers will be required to provide those things they have kept to themselves to third-party shops and equipment owners, which will likely lower the costs of equipment repairs. And the bill requires that manufacturers must make repair and service documentation freely available, most likely in the form of digital documents made available for download from the internet.
The measure, co-sponsored by Rep. Peter Fischer, DFL-Maplewood and Sen. Ann Johnson, DFL-Wayzata, was reportedly based on model legislation drafted by Consumer Reports, a longtime advocate of right-to-repair. CR Policy Analyst Laurel Lehman praised the passage of the bill.
“The Digital Fair Repair Act will ensure that Minnesotans have the ability to exercise their full traditional rights of ownership over products they purchase, including the right to get those products repaired,” she said. “We are thrilled that Minnesota is taking such a strong stance for consumers, and this offers a powerful model for other states and Congress to follow.”
Unsurprisingly, consumer groups, manufacturers and related associations, and other states have had their eyes and lobbying efforts focused on the Minnesota legislation.
The Association of Recycling Managers, a nonprofit that brings together city, county, and state recycling staff, wrote a letter supporting the bill when it was being considered in committee.
“Reusing and repairing items rather than buying new is essential for the cities and counties that make up ARM to meet our waste reduction and diversion goals,” wrote ARM chair Laura Horner. “While right to repair may be an issue primarily of smartphones and laptops now, it will quickly become a greater issue throughout our homes as more and more consumer goods incorporate electronics into their designs. We know that most modern repairs involve electronic components: any product that can have embedded electronics, will most likely have embedded electronics. Repairing those electronics requires information, parts, and other specifications related to the digital repair from the product designers.”
On the other side is a coalition of 18 organizations representing various manufacturing sectors, who have argued that surrendering their control over repairs would jeopardize consumer safety and security.
“One of our chief concerns with this legislation is its potential to weaken the privacy and security features of various electronic products,” they wrote. They warned that circumventing authorized repair networks would take repairs out of the hands of people “properly trained in the necessary skills to safely and reliably repair electronic products,” noting that “some types of repairs can be extremely detailed, complicated, and dangerous to anyone without proper training.” They cited lithium-ion batteries as a potentially hazardous item that if mishandled “can overheat and experience thermal runaway, igniting the cell’s internal materials and forcibly expelling burning contents, resulting in fires, explosions, serious injuries and even death.”
While consumer advocates eventually won the battle for electronics items, some manufacturing sectors managed to carve out exceptions, including ones for motor vehicles, including ATVs, farm equipment, medical devices, cybersecurity tools, and video game consoles.
Farmers, with a culture of self-sufficiency, were among the first in the country to jump on the right-to-repair bandwagon. Requiring farmers to take their expensive equipment off the field and transport them to a dealer or wait in line for a field service call could negatively impact production at critical planting and harvest times. Many simple parts, such as light bulbs, have been integrated into the software systems of farm equipment and can only be repaired by an authorized dealer.
However, “green” owners, those with John Deere equipment, got welcome news in January when the American Farm Bureau Federation announced a memorandum of understanding with the ag manufacturer to make materials such as manuals and on-board diagnostics available to farmers and independent repair shops in a reasonable and timely manner. New Holland and Case IH followed suit in March.
Critics note, however, that unlike the Minnesota law, the agreements aren’t enforceable.