Environment New York, other advocates press Gov. Hochul to sign Right to Repair

We have a growing electronic waste problem, and part of that is driven by the aggressive measures companies use to make our stuff impossible to repair. Companies benefit if we throw out more of our devices and have to buy more, but our throwaway culture is causing havoc for our environment.

Luckily, the New York legislature overwhelmingly voted in support of a bill that requires consumer electronics companies to let us fix our stuff.

Environment New York members have sent in hundreds of letters in support as have other environmental advocates. You can join by sending your own letter here. Most recently, the Story of Stuff delivered another 2,700 letters in support. 

This is an important bill to get over the finish line: Electronic waste is our fastest growing waste stream. 

Manufacturers often refuse to let consumers or independent repair shops have the parts, tools and information required to do repairs. And when only the manufacturer has what you need, they can charge whatever they want or push you to buy an “upgrade” instead of fixing what you own.

The Digital Fair Repair Act ends this monopolization of repair and would be a huge step toward a more repairable future. It’s time for New York to become the leader on repair so we can repair and reduce our way out of a growing electronics waste mess.