103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB3601

 

Introduced 2/17/2023, by Rep. Michelle Mussman

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act
815 ILCS 505/2BBBB new

    Creates the Educational Technology Right to Repair Act. Provides that, for educational technology equipment and parts for educational technology equipment sold or used in the State, an original equipment manufacturer shall make available to an independent repair provider, solely for the purpose of repairing educational technology equipment, on fair and reasonable terms, any documentation, parts, service access methods, and tools, including, but not limited to, any updates to information, firmware, or embedded software that is needed for purposes of repair of educational technology equipment and training courses and materials on the operation, inspection, diagnosis, maintenance, and repair of educational technology equipment. Provides that a violation of any of the provisions of the Act is an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. Provides for penalties. Provides that nothing in the Act shall require an original equipment manufacturer to divulge a trade secret to an independent repair provider. Amends the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act making a conforming change. Effective January 1, 2024.


LRB103 28339 SPS 54718 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB3601LRB103 28339 SPS 54718 b

1    AN ACT concerning business.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Educational Technology Right to Repair Act.
 
6    Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:
7    "Authorized repair provider" means an individual or
8business who has an arrangement with the original equipment
9manufacturer under which the original equipment manufacturer
10grants to the individual or business a license to use a trade
11name, service mark, or other proprietary identifier for the
12purposes of offering the services of diagnosis, maintenance,
13or repair of educational technology equipment under the name
14of the original equipment manufacturer, or other arrangement
15with the original equipment manufacturer to offer such
16services on behalf of the original equipment manufacturer. An
17original equipment manufacturer who offers the services of
18diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of its own educational
19technology equipment, and who does not have an arrangement
20with an unaffiliated individual or business, shall be
21considered an authorized repair provider with respect to
22educational technology equipment.
23    "Documentation" means any manual, diagram, reporting

 

 

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1output, service code description, schematic diagram, security
2codes, passwords, or other guidance or information used in
3effecting the services of diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of
4educational technology equipment.
5    "Educational technology equipment" means any
6self-contained portable personal computer, including
7accessories or attachments that come as standard equipment
8with the computer, purchased by a publicly-funded school and
9used by students at home or in the classroom. "Educational
10technology equipment" does not include devices that are sold
11through a retail seller or under a specific
12business-to-business contract.
13    "Fair and reasonable terms" means making available parts,
14tools, or documentation as follows:
15        (1) that documentation is made available by the
16    original equipment manufacturer at no charge, except that,
17    when the documentation is requested in physical printed
18    form, a charge may be included for the reasonable, actual
19    costs of preparing and sending the copy;
20        (2) that tools are made available by the original
21    equipment manufacturer at no charge and without requiring
22    authorization or internet access for use or operation of
23    the tool, or imposing impediments to access or use of the
24    tools to diagnose, maintain, or repair and enable full
25    functionality of digital electronic equipment, or in a
26    manner that impairs the efficient and cost-effective

 

 

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1    performance of any the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair,
2    except that, when the tool is requested in physical form,
3    a charge may be included for the reasonable, actual costs
4    of preparing and sending the tool; and
5        (3) that parts are made available by the original
6    equipment manufacturer, either directly or through an
7    authorized repair provider, to independents repair
8    providers and owners at costs and terms that are
9    equivalent to the most favorable costs and terms under
10    which an original equipment manufacturer offers the parts
11    to an authorized repair provider and that:
12            (A) accounts for any discount, rebate, convenient
13        and timely means of delivery, means of enabling fully
14        restored and updated functionality, rights of use, or
15        other incentive and preference the original
16        manufacturer offers to an authorized repair provider,
17        or any additional cost, burden, or impediment the
18        original equipment manufacturer imposes on an owner or
19        independent repair provider;
20            (B) is not conditioned on or imposing a
21        substantial obligation or restriction that is not
22        reasonably necessary for enabling the owner or
23        independent repair provider to engage in the
24        diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of equipment made by
25        or on behalf of the original equipment manufacturer;
26        and

 

 

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1            (C) is not conditioned on an arrangement with the
2        original equipment manufacturer.
3    "Independent repair provider" means an individual or
4business operating in this State that is unaffiliated with an
5original equipment manufacturer that is engaged in the
6services of diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of educational
7technology equipment.
8    "Necessary software updates" means security updates to
9patch exploits that, if left unaddressed, leave the user
10vulnerable to cyber crime, bug fixes, patches, corrections, or
11other modifications to Software which do not necessarily add
12enhanced features or performance characteristics released by
13the original equipment manufacturer or operating system
14developer.
15    "Original equipment manufacturer" means a business engaged
16in the business of selling, leasing, or otherwise supplying
17new educational technology equipment manufactured by or on
18behalf of itself, to any individual or business.
19    "Operating system" means a program that acts as the
20interface between educational technology equipment's hardware
21and its software, managing the resources of the equipment and
22providing common services for computer programs.
23    "Operating system developer" means a business engaged in
24the business of selling, leasing, licensing, or otherwise
25supplying operating system executable code, embedded software,
26or firmware for use by educational technology equipment by or

 

 

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1on behalf of itself, to any individual or business.
2    "Part" means any replacement part, either new or used,
3made available by an original equipment manufacturer for
4purposes of effecting the services of maintenance or repair of
5educational technology equipment manufactured by or on behalf
6of, sold, or otherwise supplied by the original equipment
7manufacturer.
8    "School" means an elementary or secondary school or
9another entity which owns or leases educational technology
10equipment for use by students in such an institution. It
11includes personnel who manage and service educational
12technology equipment in their official capacity at a school,
13including, but not limited to, information technology
14professionals and technology specialists.
15    "Tools" means any software program, hardware implement, or
16other apparatus used for diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of
17educational technology equipment, including software or other
18mechanisms that provision, program, or pair a new part,
19calibrate functionality, or perform any other function
20required to bring the product back to fully functional
21condition, including any updates.
22    "Trade secret" has the meaning given to that term in
23subsection (d) of Section 2 of the Illinois Trade Secrets Act.
 
24    Section 10. Requirements.
25    (a) For educational technology equipment and parts for

 

 

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1educational technology equipment that are sold or used in this
2State, an original equipment manufacturer shall make available
3to any independent repair provider and owner of educational
4technology equipment manufactured by on behalf of, or sold by
5such original equipment manufacturer, on fair and reasonable
6terms, any documentation, parts, and tools, required for the
7diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of educational technology
8equipment and parts for educational technology equipment,
9inclusive of any updates to information. The documentation
10parts and tools shall be made available either directly by the
11original equipment manufacturer or via an authorized repair
12provider.
13    (b) For equipment that contains an electronic security
14lock or other security-related function, the original
15equipment manufacturer shall make available to any owner and
16independent repair provider, on fair and reasonable terms, any
17special documentation, tools, and parts needed to access and
18reset the lock or function when disabled in the course of
19diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of educational technology
20equipment. The documentation, tools, and parts may be made
21available through appropriate secure release systems.
22    (c) For educational technology equipment sold or used in
23this State, an original equipment manufacturer shall provide
24functional parts to effect the repair of equipment for at
25least 10 years after the date a product model or type was
26manufactured.

 

 

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1     (d) For educational technology equipment sold or used in
2this State, an original equipment manufacturer operating
3system developer shall provide necessary software updates of
4equipment for at least 10 years after the date a product model
5or type was manufactured.
 
6    Section 15. Enforcement by Attorney General. A violation
7of any of the provisions of this Act is an unlawful practice
8under the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
9All remedies, penalties, and authority granted to the Attorney
10General by that Act shall be available to him or her for the
11enforcement of this Act.
 
12    Section 20. Limitations.
13    (a) Nothing in this Act shall require an original
14equipment manufacturer to divulge any trade secret to any
15owner or independent service provider.
16    (b) Nothing in this Act shall alter the terms of any
17arrangement in force between an authorized repair provider and
18an original equipment manufacturer, including, but not limited
19to, the performance or provision of warranty or recall repair
20work by an authorized repair provider on behalf of an original
21equipment manufacturer and pursuant to such arrangement,
22except that any provision in the terms that purports to waive,
23avoid, restrict or limit the original equipment manufacturer's
24obligations to comply with this Act shall be void and

 

 

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1unenforceable.
2    (c) No original equipment manufacturer or authorized
3repair provider shall be liable for any damage or injury
4caused to any educational technology equipment by an
5independent repair provider or owner which occurs during the
6course of repair, diagnosis, or maintenance.
 
7    Section 25. Exclusions. Nothing in this Act shall apply to
8any smartphones, tablets without an attached keyboard, or
9similar devices.
 
10    Section 30. Applicability. This Act applies with respect
11to equipment sold or in use on or after the effective date of
12this Act.
 
13    Section 90. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business
14Practices Act is amended by adding Section 2BBBB as follows:
 
15    (815 ILCS 505/2BBBB new)
16    Sec. 2BBBB. Violations of the Educational Technology Right
17to Repair Act. A person who violates the Educational
18Technology Right to Repair Act commits an unlawful practice
19within the meaning of this Act.
 
20    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
211, 2024.