Bill Text: CA SB244 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Right to Repair Act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-10-10 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 704, Statutes of 2023. [SB244 Detail]
Download: California-2023-SB244-Amended.html
equipment and appliance products and to prohibit intentional barriers and limitations to third-party repair.(1)Notwithstanding any other law, every manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product with a wholesale price to the retailer, or to others outside of direct retail sale, of not less than fifty dollars ($50) and not more than ninety-nine dollars and ninety-nine cents ($99.99), shall make available to owners of the product, service and repair facilities, and service dealers, sufficient documentation and functional parts and tools, inclusive of any updates, on fair and reasonable terms, to effect the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of a product for at least
three years after the last date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the three-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product.
Bill Title: Right to Repair Act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-10-10 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 704, Statutes of 2023. [SB244 Detail]
Download: California-2023-SB244-Amended.html
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Amended
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Senate
May 18, 2023 |
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Amended
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Senate
April 13, 2023 |
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Amended
IN
Senate
March 27, 2023 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 244
| Introduced by Senator Eggman (Coauthors: Senators Dodd and Skinner) (Coauthor: Assembly Member Haney) |
January 25, 2023 |
An act to amend and renumber the heading of Chapter 8.6 (commencing with Section 42490) of, and to add Chapter 8.6 (commencing with Section 42488) to, Part 3 of Division 30 of of, the Public Resources Code, relating to solid waste management.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 244, as amended, Eggman.
Right to Repair Act.
Existing law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, provides a comprehensive set of procedures for the enforcement of express and implied warranties on consumer goods, as defined. Under existing law, every manufacturer making an express warranty with respect to an electronic or appliance product, including televisions, radios, audio or video recording equipment, major home appliances, antennas, and rotators, with a wholesale price to the retailer of not less than $50 nor more than $99.99 is required to make available to service and repair facilities sufficient service literature and functional parts to effect the repair of the product for at least 3 years after the date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the 3-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product. Existing law also requires every manufacturer making an express warranty with respect to
an electronic or appliance product, as described above, with a wholesale price to the retailer of $100 or more, to make available to service and repair facilities sufficient service literature and functional parts to effect the repair of the product for at least 7 years after the date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the 7-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product.
This bill would enact the Right to Repair Act. The bill would require, except as specified and regardless of whether any express warranty is made, the manufacturer of an above-described electronic or appliance product, in the above-described circumstances, and in those same circumstances but sold to others outside of direct retail sales, to make available, on fair and reasonable terms, to product owners, service and repair facilities, and service dealers, the means, as described, to effect the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of the product, as provided. The
bill would also require a service and repair facility or service dealer that is not an authorized facility or dealer of a manufacturer to provide a written notice of that fact to any customer seeking repair of an electronic or appliance product before the repair facility or service dealer repairs the product. product, and to disclose if it uses replacement parts that are used or from a supplier that is not the manufacturer. The bill would also authorize a city, a county, a city and county, or the state to bring an action in superior court to impose civil penalties on a person or entity for violating the Right to Repair Act, as provided.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 8.6 (commencing with Section 42488) is added to Part 3 of Division 30 of the Public Resources Code, to read:CHAPTER 8.6. Right to Repair Act
42488.
This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the Right to Repair Act.42488.1.
It is the intent of the Legislature to provide a fair marketplace for the repair of electronic42488.2.
(a)(2)For products with a wholesale price to the retailer, or to others outside of direct retail sale, of not less than fifty dollars ($50) and not more than ninety-nine dollars and ninety-nine cents ($99.99), that contain an electronic security lock or other security-related function, the manufacturer shall also make available to owners of the product, service and repair facilities, and service dealers, on fair and reasonable terms, any documentation, tools, software, and parts needed to disable the lock or function, and to reset the lock or function when disabled, during the course of the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of a product for at least three years after the last date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the three-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product.
(b) (1)Notwithstanding any other law, every manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product with a wholesale price to the retailer, or to others outside of direct retail sale, of one hundred dollars ($100) or more, shall make available to owners of the product, service and repair facilities, and service dealers sufficient documentation and functional parts and tools, inclusive of any updates, on fair and reasonable terms, to effect the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of a product for at least seven years after the last date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the seven-year period
exceeds the warranty period for the product.
(2)For products with a wholesale price to the retailer, or to others outside of direct retail sale, of one hundred dollars ($100) or more, that contain an electronic security lock or other security-related function, the manufacturer shall also make available to owners of the product, service and repair facilities, and service dealers, on fair and reasonable terms, any documentation, tools, software, and parts needed to disable the lock or function, and to reset the lock or function when disabled, during the course of the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of a product for at least seven years after the last date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the seven-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product.
(c) Except as
necessary to comply with this section, this section does not require a manufacturer to divulge a trade secret. secret or license any intellectual property, including copyrights or patents.
(d) This section does not require the distribution of a product’s source code.
(e) A service and repair facility or service dealer that is not an authorized facility or dealer of a manufacturer shall provide a written notice to any customer seeking repair of an electronic or appliance product before the repair
facility or service dealer repairs the product that informs the customer that it is not a manufacturer-authorized or -affiliated manufacturer-affiliated service dealer for the product. product, and shall disclose if it uses any used replacement parts or replacement parts provided by a supplier other than the manufacturer of the product.
(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require a manufacturer to make
available special documentation, tools, and parts that would disable or override antitheft security measures set by the owner of the product without the owner’s authorization.
(g) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require a manufacturer to sell service parts if the service parts are no longer provided by the manufacturer or made available to itself or to manufacturer-authorized or manufacturer-affiliated service dealers.
(f)
(h) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Documentation” means any electronic or appliance product manual, diagram, reporting output, service code description, schematic, or similar information that is provided by a manufacturer to an authorized service dealer, or that is for use by the manufacturer if the manufacturer does not have any authorized service dealers, for purposes of effecting the services of diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of the electronic or appliance product.
(2) (A) “Electronic or appliance product” or “product” means a product described in subdivision (h), (i), (j), or (k) of Section 9801 of the Business and Professions Code, Code for
which the manufacturer makes available tools, parts, and documentation to itself or to authorized repair providers, and includes products described in those subdivisions that are sold to schools, businesses, local governments, or in other methods outside of direct retail sale.
(B) “Electronic or appliance product” or “product” does not include any of the following:
(i) Equipment or repair parts as defined in Chapter 28 (commencing with Section 22900) of Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code.
(ii) A product or component of an “alarm system” as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 7590.1 of the Business and Professions Code.
(iii) A
video game console.
(3) (A) “Fair and reasonable terms” means at costs and terms that are equivalent to the most favorable costs and terms under which the manufacturer offers the part, tool, or documentation to an authorized service dealer, or to itself, if it does not have authorized
service dealers, accounting for any discount, rebate, convenient and timely means of delivery, means of enabling fully restored and updated functionality, rights of use, or other incentive or preference the manufacturer offers to an authorized service dealer.
(B) For documentation, including any relevant updates, “fair and reasonable terms” also means at no charge, except that, when the documentation is requested in physical printed form, a charge may be included for the reasonable actual costs of preparing and sending the copy.
(C) “Fair and reasonable” also means tools shall be made available by the manufacturer at no charge and without imposing impediments to
access or use of the tools to diagnose, maintain, or repair and enable full functionality of the product, or in a manner that impairs the efficient and cost-effective performance of any such diagnosis, maintenance, or repair, except that, when a tool is requested in physical form, a charge may be included for the reasonable, actual costs of preparing and sending the tool.
(D) If a manufacturer does not use an authorized service dealer for a given repair, “fair and reasonable terms” means at a price that reflects the actual cost to the manufacturer to prepare and deliver the part, tool, or documentation, exclusive of any research and development costs incurred.
(4) “Part” means any replacement part or assembly of parts, either new or used, made available by a manufacturer of
an electronic or appliance product to itself or to manufacturer-authorized or manufacturer-affiliated service dealers to facilitate the maintenance or repair of a product sold by the manufacturer.
(4)
(5) “Service dealer” has the same meaning as defined in Section 9801 of the Business and Professions Code.
(6) “Tool” means any software program, hardware implement, or other apparatus made available by a manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product to
itself or to manufacturer-authorized or manufacturer-affiliated service dealers for the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of the product, including software or other mechanisms that provide, program, pair a part, calibrate functionality, or perform any other function required to repair the product or part back to fully functional condition, including any updates.
(5)
(7) “Trade secret” has the same meaning as set forth in subdivision (d) of Section 3426.1 of the Civil Code, or paragraph (9) of subdivision (a) of Section 499c of the Penal Code.
(6)
(8) “Video game console” means a computing device, including its components and peripherals, that is primarily used by consumers for playing video games, such as a console machine, a handheld console device, or another device or system. “Video game console” does not include a general or an all-purpose computer, which includes, but is not limited to, a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, or cell phone.
42488.3.
(a) A city, a county, a city and county, or the state may bring an action in superior court to impose civil liability on a person or entity that knowingly violated this chapter, or reasonably should have known that it violated this chapter, in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1,000) per day for the first violation of this chapter, two thousand dollars ($2,000) per day for the second violation, and five thousand dollars ($5,000) per day for the third and subsequent violations.(b) Any civil penalties collected pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be paid to the office of the city attorney, county counsel, district attorney, or Attorney General, whichever office
brought the action. The penalties collected pursuant to this section by the
Attorney General may be expended by the Attorney General, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to enforce this chapter.
