Apple supports California Right to Repair law

Well, I didn’t see this coming; Apple has penned a letter to California state senator Susan Talamantes Eggman, voicing support for SB 244, a “right to repair” bill currently making its way through Sacramento’s State Capitol building, reports TechCrunch.

“Apple supports California’s Right to Repair Act so all Californians have even greater access to repairs while also protecting their safety, security, and privacy,” the company says in a statement provided to TechCrunch. “We create our products to last and, if they ever need to be repaired, Apple customers have a growing range of safe, high-quality repair options.”

In the past Apple has adamantly opposed Right to Repair laws. For example, A lobbyist working for Apple, Google, Samsung, and other tech companies succeeded in diluting the impact of a Right to Repair law. Tech trade group TechNet gave suggested wording to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who reportedly inserted that language verbatim, reports 9to5Mac.

The article says the new wording places limits on the spare parts that tech giants have to make available to customers and independent repair shops. This isn’t the first time Apple and other big tech firms have worked to dilute such laws. 

In March 2021 trade groups representing big tech companies including Apple clashed with independent repair shop owners in a committee hearing in the Nevada Legislature over a proposal to require hardware manufacturers give repair shops the means to fix devices like computers, phones, tablets and printers, reported the AP News.

To help reinforce its stance against Right to Repair laws, in November 2021 Apple announced a Self Service Repair program, which allows customers who are comfortable with completing their own repairs access to Apple genuine parts and tools. With the announcement, Apple said customers join more than 5,000 Apple Authorized Service Providers (AASPs) and 2,800 Independent Repair Providers who have access to these parts, tools, and manuals.

“Right to Repair” bills are loosely based on a Massachusetts ballot initiative that voters approved last year to make car parts and plans available to repair shops. Such bills means manufacturers such as Apple will have to sell replacement parts to independent repair shops and consumers and will also have to make their diagnostic and service manuals public.