Consumer Reports, Access Humboldt, Aspiration, Consumer Action, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Media Alliance, and Privacy Rights Clearinghouse write in support of SB 983 to guarantee the right to repair, to help ensure that consumers have the choice to fix their own electronics-enabled products, if they can, or to have them fixed by a repair servicer of their choosing, including servicers independent of the manufacturer. President Biden has recognized the importance of this right, by including it in the Executive Order he released earlier this year. And in May, the Federal Trade Commission released a landmark report, Nixing the Fix, which explores how repair restrictions hurt consumers.
We all agree that it is important to safeguard and maintain consumers’ ability to exercise their full rights of ownership over the electronics-enabled consumer products they purchase, including the right to repair them, even as technology evolves. Ensuring an effective right to repair will also expand consumer choice in the marketplace, save consumers money, and reduce waste.
For the full letter, please see the attached PDF.