Bill Text: NY A08955 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Modifies what qualifies as an original equipment manufacturer and the manufacture date when hardware must comply with the right to repair law; repeals certain limitations on the right to repair law.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-30 - referred to consumer affairs and protection [A08955 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A08955-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          8955

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 30, 2024
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. FAHY -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Consumer Affairs and Protection

        AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation  to  the  sale  of
          digital  electronic  equipment  and  providing  diagnostic  and repair
          information; and to amend chapter 810 of the laws of 2022 amending the
          general business law relating to the sale of digital electronic equip-
          ment and providing diagnostic and repair information, in  relation  to
          the effectiveness thereof

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Paragraphs (a), (b), and (m) of subdivision  1,  paragraphs
     2  (a),  (g),  (h), (i) and (j) of subdivision 3, paragraphs (d) and (e) of
     3  subdivision 4, and the opening paragraph of  subdivision  6  of  section
     4  399-nn  of  the  general  business  law,  paragraphs (a), (b) and (m) of
     5  subdivision 1, paragraphs (a) and (g) of subdivision 3, and the  opening
     6  paragraph  of  subdivision 6, as amended and paragraphs (h), (i) and (j)
     7  of subdivision 3, and paragraphs (d) and (e) of subdivision 4, as  added
     8  by chapter 48 of the laws of 2023, are amended to read as follows:
     9    (a)  "Authorized  repair provider" means an individual or business who
    10  has an arrangement with the original equipment manufacturer under  which
    11  the original equipment manufacturer grants to the individual or business
    12  a  license to use a trade name, service mark, or other proprietary iden-
    13  tifier for the purposes of offering the services of  diagnosis,  mainte-
    14  nance,  or  repair of digital electronic equipment under the name of the
    15  original equipment manufacturer, or other arrangement with the  original
    16  equipment  manufacturer to offer such services on behalf of the original
    17  equipment manufacturer. An original equipment  manufacturer  who  offers
    18  the  services  of  diagnosis,  maintenance, or repair of its own digital
    19  electronic equipment shall be considered an authorized  repair  provider
    20  with respect to such equipment.
    21    (b)  "Digital  electronic equipment" or "equipment" means any hardware
    22  product manufactured for the first time, and first sold or used  in  New
    23  York  on  or  after July first, two thousand [twenty-three, that depends
    24  for its functioning, in whole or in part, on digital electronics  embed-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13653-02-4
        A. 8955                             2

     1  ded  in  or  attached to the product] twenty-one, for which the original
     2  equipment manufacturer makes available tools, parts,  and  documentation
     3  either  through  authorized  repair providers, its own employees, or any
     4  authorized  third-party  providers  ["Digital  electronic  equipment" or
     5  "equipment" does not include any product sold  under  a  specific  busi-
     6  ness-to-government or business-to-business contract, which is not other-
     7  wise offered for sale directly by a retail seller].
     8    (m) "Part" or "parts" means any replacement part or assembly of parts,
     9  either new or used, made available by an original equipment manufacturer
    10  for  purposes  of  effecting  the  services  of maintenance or repair of
    11  digital electronic equipment manufactured or sold by the original equip-
    12  ment manufacturer. [Part does not include printed board assemblies  that
    13  may allow device cloning in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 1029 or other
    14  applicable law.]
    15    (a) [Nothing] Except as necessary to comply with this section, nothing
    16  in  this  section  shall  be  construed to require an original equipment
    17  manufacturer to divulge [any] a trade secret or license any intellectual
    18  property, including copyrights or patents, to any owner  or  independent
    19  service provider.
    20    (g) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require any original
    21  equipment  manufacturer  or authorized repair provider to make available
    22  any parts, tools, or documentation required for the  diagnosis,  mainte-
    23  nance,  or  repair  of any [home appliance that has a digital electronic
    24  product embedded within it, including, but not  limited  to,  refrigera-
    25  tors,  ovens, microwaves, air conditioning, heating units, and] security
    26  devices or alarm systems including any related software and components.
    27    (h) Nothing in  this  section  shall  prevent  an  original  equipment
    28  manufacturer  from  establishing  reasonable  training and certification
    29  programs for  independent  repair  providers,  however,  no  independent
    30  repair  provider  shall  be  required  to  complete any such training or
    31  certification program as a condition to be covered by the rights granted
    32  under this chapter.
    33    (i) [Nothing in this  section  shall  prevent  an  original  equipment
    34  manufacturer from offering parts, such as integrated batteries, to inde-
    35  pendent repair providers or owners pre-assembled with other parts rather
    36  than  as individual components, where the individual components may pose
    37  a heightened safety risk if installed improperly.
    38    (j)] Nothing in this  section  shall  require  an  original  equipment
    39  manufacturer  to  make available special documentation, tools, and parts
    40  that would disable or override anti-theft security measures set  by  the
    41  owner of the equipment without the owner's authorization.
    42    (d)  outside  the meter commercial and industrial electrical equipment
    43  [(]including power distribution equipment, [such as  medium/low  voltage
    44  switchgear and transformers, power control equipment, such as medium/low
    45  voltage motor control and drives, power quality equipment, such as unin-
    46  terruptable  power  supplies,  remote  power  panels, power distribution
    47  units and static/transfer switches)] and any tools, technology,  attach-
    48  ments,  accessories,  components and repair parts for any of the forego-
    49  ing.
    50    (e) an electronic bicycle manufacturer, distributor, importer, retail-
    51  er or dealer.
    52    Before repairing  digital  electronic  equipment,  independent  repair
    53  providers  shall  provide  to  any  customer,  [and] or publish on their
    54  website and the place of business, a written notice  that  contains  the
    55  following information:
        A. 8955                             3

     1    § 2. Section 3 of chapter 810 of the laws of 2022 amending the general
     2  business  law  relating  to the sale of digital electronic equipment and
     3  providing diagnostic and repair information, as amended by chapter 48 of
     4  the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
     5    §  3. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
     6  law and shall apply to digital electronic  equipment,  manufactured  for
     7  the  first  time, and first sold or used in New York on or after July 1,
     8  [2023] 2021.
     9    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.