Texas legislators became the first in a “red state” to send a right-to-repair consumer electronics bill to the governor’s desk, and the bill differs in several ways from other recent laws.
Bipartisan Texas House Bill 2963 was sent to Gov. Greg Abbott on June 2, after passing the House on May 5 and the Senate on May 28. In the House, the vote was 130 yes votes — 48 Democrats and 82 Republicans – with no votes against but 20 legislators absent or abstaining. In the Senate, it was unanimous, with 31 yes votes and no votes against, absent or abstaining. The Senate has 20 Republicans and 11 Democrats.
The bill mirrors language in bills passed elsewhere in the U.S., but it only applies to devices purchased after Sept. 1, 2026, that have a wholesale price of more than $50. In addition, it provides more safeguards for OEMs and does not ban parts pairing, which is the use of software to ensure a device will only operate with specific individual parts.Â
For example, as a form of “alternative relief,” instead of making documentation, replacement parts or tools available, the OEM could provide an owner reimbursement for the item or “an equivalent or better, readily available replacement.”
That only applies to owners who are original purchasers, not purchasers of secondhand devices.Â
The bill excludes motor vehicles, farm equipment, IT equipment critical to national security, medical devices, airplanes, trains, heavy equipment, commercial and industrial electrical equipment, home appliances and video game consoles.
TexPIRG said in a statement that “in today’s consumptive world, it is easier to just throw out than to repair things. And that is by design. When manufacturers design for obsolescence and erect barriers to repairs, consumers lose.”
