Sponsors
The bill significantly expands consumers' and independent repairers' legal access to repair parts, tools, and documentation—boosting competition, lowering repair costs, and reducing e‑waste—while raising tradeoffs around increased consumer prices, potential security/safety risks, and new litigation and compliance burdens for manufacturers and repairers.
Independent repair providers and device owners (small repair shops, homeowners, people with disabilities, tech workers) gain clear statutory access to parts, tools, and repair documentation on fair, non‑discriminatory terms, enabling more local and DIY repairs and greater competition with OEM service arms.
Replacement parts and repair workflows will work more reliably because prohibitions on parts‑pairing and requirements to permit disabling/resetting of security locks allow third‑party and replacement parts to function, lowering repair costs and reducing electronic waste by extending device lifespans.
A federal and state enforcement framework (FTC authority plus state attorneys general ability to sue) gives both national and local regulators tools to stop noncompliance and obtain injunctions, penalties, and restitution for residents, improving enforceability.
Consumers and taxpayers could face higher prices because OEMs may pass compliance and administrative costs (and any state enforcement damages) onto product prices or reduce warranty benefits.
Device security and safety could be weakened or innovation constrained because OEMs may remove or alter security/anti‑tamper features to comply, and broad access could increase risk if safety‑critical products (e.g., medical devices, vehicles) are affected without careful safeguards.
The act increases litigation and regulatory uncertainty: companies face duplicative state and federal suits, inconsistent enforcement across states, and likely disputes over statutory scope (what counts as covered equipment or 'fair' terms).
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Introduced February 10, 2026 by Ben Ray Luján · Last progress February 10, 2026
Requires makers of digital electronic equipment to provide owners and independent repair providers with the documentation, parts, and tools (including updates) needed to diagnose, maintain, and repair devices on fair and reasonable terms. Prohibits manufacturers from using software pairing, warnings, pricing practices, or sales restrictions to block or reduce functionality of replacement parts, and sets enforcement by the Federal Trade Commission with parallel state attorney general authority. The law protects trade secrets to the extent needed, creates liability limits for manufacturers related to third-party repairs, lists categorical exemptions (for example, motor vehicles and medical devices), and takes effect 60 days after enactment for covered equipment sold or in use on or after that date.