Source: iFixit on Washington’s dual R2R bills
Also useful context: R2R bills introduced in all 50 states
What “passed” does and does not mean
A signed law is not the same as a perfect parts portal the next morning. In practice, these bills usually push manufacturers toward:
- Selling parts, tools, and documentation to independents and owners
- Reducing some parts-pairing and software lockouts over time
- Creating timelines (often the following calendar year) for compliance
- Make every boardview free forever
- Ban all serialization
- Guarantee OEM parts at thrift-store prices
- Replace skill, ESD discipline, or safety training
Powered wheelchair legislation is not a tangent. When a mobility device fails, “buy a new one” is not a lifestyle choice — it is a medical and financial crisis. Pairing electronics R2R with wheelchair R2R signals that repair access is being treated as infrastructure, not hobby politics.
Mosfetti practical stance
Whether you solder for a living or fix family laptops on weekends:
- Document the devices you refuse because parts are locked — that evidence still matters
- Support vendors who publish manuals and sell loose parts
- Learn diagnostics that do not depend on a vendor dongle when possible
- Separate confirmed legal obligations from hopeful social-media summaries
If you run or use an independent repair shop: which blocked part or software pairing issue should be first on every R2R enforcement checklist?