This week, the Oregon House passed the Right to Repair bill by a margin of nearly 3 to 1, 42 to 13. If signed into law, the Northwest state wouldn’t be the first union to pass a right-to-repair bill. Although similar to the fourth, this bill contains more offensive language than is on the book. As a result, the manufacturer split.
Google fully supported this bill in January. An executive at a software giant called Oregon “a compelling model for other states to follow” in an open letter.
Apple, which previously wrote an open letter supporting the California bill, was less enthusiastic. In particular, the similarities between banknotes create stark contrasts. In fact, Oregon based much of the bill on its neighbor to the south. The company argues that, similarly to California law: mostly I agree with Oregon’s approach.
“Apple agrees with the majority of Senate Bill 1596,” John Perry, Apple’s senior manager of security systems design, said in testimony to state lawmakers last month. “I met with the senator. [Janeen] Sollman has thanked her for her willingness to engage in public dialogue on several occasions. Senate Bill 1596 is another step forward in ensuring that Oregonians, myself included, can easily and cost-effectively repair their devices.”
Apple’s biggest obstacle to the bill is known as “component pairing.” This practice requires the use of proprietary components for the repaired device to function as intended. Perry cited biometrics as a particular concern, saying:
The current component pairing language in SB 1596 would require Apple to allow third-party biometric sensors to operate on our devices without any form of authentication, which could lead to unauthorized access to individuals’ personal data. This can cause enormous harm to consumers. There is no ability to locally limit these provisions, not only in Oregon but globally.
But the practice has long been a cause for concern among repair advocates. The Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) has petitioned the FTC to ban what it calls “one of the most pernicious obstacles to the right to repair.”
Charlie Fisher, OPIRG State Director, added: “I’m proud that we’re moving toward an innovation that’s even more important than new devices: the right to fix our electronic devices. “By removing manufacturer restrictions, Right to Repair will make it easier for Oregonians to keep their personal electronics in working order. This will help preserve precious natural resources and prevent waste. “It’s a refreshing alternative to the ‘disposable’ system where everything is treated as disposable.”
In an interview with TechCrunch last month, Senator Sollman expressed frustration with attempts to communicate with Apple during the billing process.
“People were coming to me with potential changes and I felt like I was playing the operator game, as if it was Apple themselves and not the people who were supposed to be leading the change,” she told TechCrunch. “I’m really disappointed. We’ve embraced many of the changes Apple included in the California bill. Two items remained related to them. We’ve covered one of them. Because it provided ambiguity in the bill. So I . . . They will be on top of the hill with their parts pairing.”
The bill received bipartisan support in both the state Senate and Assembly. The bill now heads to the governor’s office, where it could be signed into law.