March 15, 2011 — Members of the Automotive Service Association (ASA) on Monday testified against proposed Right to Repair legislation at a public hearing before the Oregon House of Representatives’ Committee on Business and Labor.
All of them made essentially the same point: that the legislation is unnecessary and would create government bureaucracy that could hurt the industry, according to the ASA. The legislation, House Bill 3243, would require vehicle manufacturers to make tools, information, software and wireless capabilities available to owners, owner designees and repair shops.
“One of my fears is that if you approve H.B. 3243, the information that is already available—the information I now use to repair and maintain vehicles—will become more expensive and difficult to come by,” repairer Kenneth Williams, from Portland, Ore., said at the hearing. “I am afraid this legislation will drive up my costs and this, in turn, will drive up what consumers pay for repairs.”
For more information on the hearing and proposed legislation, go to ASA’s legislative website, takingthehill.org.
