Branches Agree On Auto Repair Info Access
Another chapter in the long-running controversy over access to motor vehicle diagnostic information was written Wednesday night when the Senate passed the latest version of “right to repair” legislation without any debate.
The House passed the legislation last week and agreed to the Senate’s version on Wednesday.
The Senate adopted one amendment, offered by Sens. Thomas Kennedy, D-Brockton, and Robert Hedlund, R-Weymouth, related to heavy-duty and commercial vehicles. The amendment includes manufacturers of heavy duty trucks and commercial vehicles in the bill, resolving a sticking point that senators negotiated behind closed doors all afternoon while a cadre of lobbyists on the bill idled in the corridors.
Lawmakers are attempting to reconcile two conflicting laws that require automakers to give more diagnostic information to repair shops. Last year, Massachusetts became the first state to pass a law on the nationally debated issue that auto manufacturers have fought for years, arguing that information sharing jeopardizes proprietary data.
The Legislature passed a law last July, but not soon enough to pull the question from the November ballot. Voters passed a slightly different version, which required automakers to share diagnostic information by the 2015 car model year. The Legislature dictated the information be available by 2018.
Kennedy said the bill passed this week pushed the date back because it would be impossible for manufacturers to meet the requirement that quickly. Cars for that year are already in production.
(Image credit: freedigitalphotos.net)
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