The governor of the US state of New York signed the right-to-repair bill approved by the senate six months ago. She has done this with an addition that, according to advocates, undermines the entire law.
Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul signed the law on December 28, according to The Verge, among others . The bill passed by the Senate requires tools, parts and instructions regarding “digital electronic products” to be made available to consumers and independent repairers by manufacturers.
Several additions have been made that, according to critics such as Louis Rossmann and iFixit, do not work in favor of the original intent. Firstly, electronics for companies, such as schools, hospitals, universities and data centers are exempt from the law. In addition, when the law enters into force on July 1, 2023, it will apply to devices that are newly produced from then on; existing articles owned by consumers are excluded.
Furthermore, the amendments state that manufacturers are free to sell assemblies of multiple parts rather than individual parts. This is at the expense of the affordability of the components required by consumers. Finally, the site also writes that “passwords, security codes or materials” that are necessary to overcome security measures in parts do not have to be provided. An example of such component security is that Face ID on iPhones no longer works in certain cases when the screen is replaced. This is to prevent ‘physical injury’ and ‘security problems’ in the event of a risk of incorrect installation.
Nevertheless , iFixit describes the new law as “historic” and something to celebrate. Right-to-repair activist Louis Rossmann has responded in the form of a video and is critical; he describes the law as a ‘useless piece of shit bill’.
