All members of the Maine State Legislature’s Innovation, Development, Economic Advancement and Business (IDEA) Committee have supported the passage of a bill to institute a “right to repair” for electronic devices, but lawmakers remain divided over the specific construction of the law.
LD 1487 — An Act to Ensure That Residents of the State Have the Right to Repair Their Own Electronic Devices — was sponsored by Sen. Mike Tipping (D-Penobscot) last year and carried over to this legislative session.
This bill was originally co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, including: Rep. Kristi Michele Mathieson (D-Kittery), Sen. Eric Brakey (R-Androscoggin), Rep. David Boyer (R-Poland), Rep. Sally Jeane Cluchey (D-Bowdoinham), Rep. Rebecca L. Jauch (D-Topsham), Rep. Grayson B. Lookner (D-Portland), and Rep. Amy J. Roeder (D-Bangor).
The primary difference between the two amended versions of LD 1487 put forward by the IDEA Committee in their divided report lies in the approach taken to defining the types of devices included and excluded from the “right to repair” established by the law.
While the Committee’s majority report includes a long list of products that are explicitly excluded from the statute, the minority amendment opts instead to provide a more restricted definition of what devices are included under the proposed law.
Lawmakers on the IDEA Committee are divided along partisan lines with respect to which version of this bill they favor recommending to the full Legislature.
[RELATED: Maine Lawmakers Consider “Right to Repair” for Electronic Devices]
Supporting the Committee’s majority amendment are Sen. Chip Curry (D-Waldo), Rep. Tiffany Roberts (D-South Berwick), Rep. W. Edward Crockett (D-Portland), Rep. Raegan French LaRochelle (D-Augusta), Sen. Joe Rafferty (D-York), Rep. Daniel Sayre (D-Kennebunk), and Rep. Bruce A. White (D-Waterville).
Backing the Committee’s minority amendment are Rep. Amanda N. Collamore (R-Pittsfield), Sen. Stacey Guerin (R-Penobscot), Rep. Lucas John Lanigan (R-Sanford), Rep. Caleb Joshua Ness (R-Fryeburg), Rep. Katrina J. Smith (R-Palermo), and Rep. Mark Walker (R-Naples).
Under the majority’s amendment, devices covered by the proposed right to repair would include products “sold at retail for personal household, family or home office use” with a wholesale price of more than $50 that are dependent “in whole or in part on digital electronics embedded in or attached to the product.”
Subsequently, the bill includes a lengthy clause specifying various types of equipment that are not to be construed as falling under the definition of “digital electronic equipment,” including motor vehicle components, medical devices, off-road equipment, farm machinery, outdoor power equipment, generators, industrial equipment, safety communications equipment, home security devices, and video game consoles.
Click Here to Read the Majority’s Amendment to LD 1487
The minority amendment, on the other hand, defines “personal digital electronic equipment” more narrowly, including only “computer[s], cellular telephone[s] or tablet[s]” that are sold at retail for “personal, household, family or home office use” with a price tag of more than $50 that are dependent “in whole or in part on digital electronics embedded in or attached to the product.”
This version of the bill does not include any specific exemptions, but rather relies upon the boundaries drawn in the definition to exclude other types of electronic equipment.
Click Here to Read the Minority’s Amendment to LD 1487
Both versions of this bill that have been put forward by the Committee require original equipment manufacturers — beginning on August 1, 2025 — to “make available on fair and reasonable terms to any independent repair provider or owner of the equipment any documentation, parts or tools, or their equivalents, required for the diagnosis, maintenance or repair of the equipment.”
Both versions of the proposed law provide specific definitions for many of the terms used in this clause, including “fair and reasonable terms.”
Under both of the Committee’s amendments, a violation of this law would represent a violation of the Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act.
Both of the proposed amendments also include a requirement that independent repair providers give device owners written notice prior to working on their equipment that explains they are not an authorized repair provider and allowing them to work on their electronics may impact the manufacturer’s warranty.
This notice would also need to disclose if the independent repair provider “uses any used replacement parts or replacement parts provided by a supplier other than the original equipment manufacturer.”
The IDEA Committee reported out its diverging recommendations for this bill to the Legislature on Wednesday.
Thursday, a motion offered by Sen. Chip Curry (D-Waldo) to table consideration of LD 1487 pending acceptance of either report prevailed, meaning it is not immediately clear when the chamber will move to vote on this legislation.
Manufacturer’s have instigated the throw away society by making repairs impossible. They indoctrinated young people to throw away two year old phones for latest $1000 dollar ones, Try to get a 100k EV repaired “good luck”