How We Lose The Right To Repair Our Cars

For the last decade, a Massachusetts law governing autos has been a de-facto national mandate and the U.S.’ only right to repair law. A lawsuit, new technology and a conservative SCOTUS could end it.

Advocates for a right to repair our stuff haven’t had that much to celebrate in the last decade. That’s (mostly) because campaign contributions and lobbyists representing the interests of industry and big business set the tune that lawmakers in statehouses dance to. So too in Washington D.C.

That’s how it can be that - in poll after poll - a right to repair enjoys “supermajority” support of voters - somewhere between 60% and 75%. (We should also note that Massachusetts’ two right to repair ballot initiatives in 2012 and 2020 were supported by 87% and 75% of voters, respectively.)

An issue with 75% support? 87% support? Sounds like a slam dunk for any politician, no? And yet opponents of right to repair laws have succeeded in killing off 100 proposed right to repair bills in 41 states since 2014, according to data from US PIRG.

(See also: Signs you may not really be living in a democracy.)

To date, no new right to repair laws of any sort have passed, though Colorado is poised to end that impressive streak of victories by repair opponents with a wheelchair right to repair bill headed to the desk of that state’s Democratic Governor, who is expected to sign it into law. That’s great news, but most coaches would say a 99% win rate is a pretty good record, so maybe its too early to do a repair end zone dance over the win in Colorado.

As noted above, one bright spot has been automobiles. Voters in Massachusetts, in 2012, became the first in the United States to create a legal right to repair of any kind: passing a ballot measure that required automakers with dealerships in the Bay State to supply owners and independent mechanics with access to the same software and diagnostic information that they provided to their dealerships and authorized repair shops. That one state law turned into a de-facto federal law, after major automakers, in 2014, signed a memorandum of understanding (PDF) recognizing Massachusetts’ law nationally. That means hundreds of millions of car owners in the U.S. have enjoyed the fruits of a robust and diversified market for auto repairs: affordable prices and lots of choices including dealerships, authorized repair providers, independent garages and aftermarket parts suppliers enabling owner repair. 

Rather than lamenting their decision in 2012, Massachusetts voters doubled down: passing an expansion of that law giving owners access to wireless telematics data in November, 2020 by a 3:1 margin.

In the countless debates and discussions about proposed right to repair laws in the years since its passage, Massachusetts’ automobile right to repair law has served as a model and a beacon: a gentle reminder to legislators and consumers alike that they are already benefitting from a right to repair law and proof that manufacturers’ and industry lobbyists’ dire warnings about the dire consequences of a legal right to repair smartphones, agricultural equipment, laptops and home appliances are so much hot air. 

But today, as Colorado’s governor prepares to sign the first, new right to repair bill of any kind since that landmark 2012 bill, the right to repair automobiles is suddenly at risk: imperiled by changing technology, lawsuits and a fast shifting legal terrain that could hamstring the ability of agencies like the Federal Trade Commission to police anti competitive practices.