ufacturing called “VIN locking,” and manufacturers of kitchen appliances have also begun pairing parts with serial numbers, making it harder to make simple repairs. According to Godin, manufacturers say they do this to prevent counterfeiting, but he thinks there would be fewer counterfeit parts on the market if companies made replacement parts readily available to customers and to business owners like himself, and provided more support for repair. It’s created a situation where it’s often easier for customers to dispose of and replace electronic devices rather than replace them. But the tide is turning. EARLIER THIS YEAR, Gov. Tina Kotek signed Senate Bill 1596, which requires manufacturers to make the same documents, parts and tools available to the owners of consumer electronic equipment that they make available to authorized service providers for repair, maintenance and troubleshooting. At least three other states have passed similar bills in recent years — notably California, which passed a Right to Repair bill in 2023. Oregon’s law is notable, though, because it was the first to take direct aim at parts pairing. Under the law, manufacturers may not use parts pairing to prohibit an independent repair provider or device owner from installing or enabling the function of an otherwise functional replacement part or component of consumer electronic equipment. The bill goes into effect Jan. 1, 2025, but enforcement doesn’t start until 2027, at which point consumers will be able to complain to the attorney general’s office if they believe a company is in violation. If the office finds a company is in violation, it can impose a civil penalty up to $1,000 per day as the violation continues or enjoin the company to restrain the violation. “We wanted to make sure that as we see other policies that have come into play, and as we put this language together, that we were allowing companies to make potential changes to their process so that they can be good actors in this,” says Sen. Janeen Sollman (D-Forest Grove). “This was never set up as a gotcha. We wanted to make sure that we were good partners in this process.” The bill passed 42-13 and enjoyed broad bipartisan support, with Republican Sen. Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer, co-sponsoring the bill. Republicans got on board once they saw that much of the business community was on board, Sollman says. One big supporter was Google, which described the measure as “a win for consumers who are looking for affordable repair options, for the environment, and for compa- “Parts pairing was such a sticking point because I felt that if we eliminated the language that we had in the bill, it would essentially provide Apple the lane in which they could continue doing the practices that they do, which to me was very anticonsumer behavior.” SEN. JANEEN SOLLMAN (D-FOREST GROVE) Hyperion Computerworks co-owner Romain Godin at the shop’s soldering station 30
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