TL; DR
- President Biden is preparing an executive order to allow the FTC to enact rules on the right to repair.
- You can use it to repair your phone or PC yourself or at an independent repair shop.
- The order could be placed within days.
If you have dreamed of a day when you can repair (or take to independent stores) your own equipment with no warranty issues, then maybe your wish will soon come true. Bloomberg learned that President Biden is about to issue an executive order urging the Federal Trade Commission to create rules for the right to repair that would apply nationwide.
The Right to Repair Order would allow the FTC to define the specific rules, but Biden would turn his attention to phone manufacturers, farm equipment, and defense companies, so Bloomberg‘s sources. The White House has not confirmed the details of the order, but economic adviser Brian Deese said the executive’s decision would lead to “more competition”, lower prices and higher wages.
Each FTC order would take a while to complete. However, once national repair law regulations go into effect, companies may not be able to void your warranty or otherwise penalize you for unofficial maintenance. The rules could also prevent companies from restricting access to necessary repair tools. The measures may not make repairs easy, however – you may still have to deal with glue and sealed batteries.
The order would come after numerous governments tried (and occasionally succeeded) in implementing their own right to repair measures. While state lawmakers have largely failed to legislate repair rights (sometimes due to lobbying), the European Commission plans to introduce rules that will mandate expanded repair capabilities for phones, PCs and tablets. A US-wide law would effectively replace states and replicate at least part of this EU approach.
Expect strong resistance from tech companies. Apple, Google, Microsoft and others have fought hard against the bills for the right to repair. The companies argue that the measures would make it easier to demolish intellectual property, increase security risks and even harm users through failed attempts at repair. Not that these arguments make much difference to the FTC. It’s likely to move forward regardless of what the companies want, so it’s only a matter of time before you have more repair options.