I really have trouble understanding that map. What does "Active and Passed" mean? I assumed it meant they had passed laws and updates in the works, but those States are excluded from the praise over the "Passed" States. I presume "Historical" means "Failed to pass" and no current activity to get a law passed.
You are correct, something is not in sync with that map and their description. That is, their description says that five states have passed legislation: New York, California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Colorado. But in the "Passed" and "Active and Passed" categories on the map, it includes those 5 states plus Massachusetts.
FWIW, all of the searching I could find about Right to Repair laws in Massachusetts focused solely on vehicle right to repair (e.g. see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Massachusetts_Question_1), not on electronic devices generally, so maybe that's why Massachusetts was not included in the description (which specifically said "passed electronics right to repair legislation") but was categorized on the map.
Hi all! I volunteer with repair.org to create the map on repair.org/legislation and saw this thread. I'm sorry for the confusion!
I have updated the map to remove MA from the "Passed" or "Active and Passed" category given the law that has passed is related to automotive and our focus is more on digital electronics equipment.
I also updated the legend to address some of the valid concerns mentioned here:
Dark Red = Active in 2025 (or current year);
Light Red = Active before 2025;
Red and Black = Law Passed & Currently Active;
Black = Law Passed
Maybe they're excluded because they've already been praised, and they're focused on the new states joining in? I assume "active and passed" means that they not only passed the laws, but they are currently in effect. A law being passed doesn't necessarily put it into immediate effect.
I did consider that interpretation, but by "praise" I simply mean that the article says "Five states (New York, California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Colorado) have passed electronics Right to Repair legislation" and that "the remaining states are working hard to restore repair competition" which is also overblown since so many of the States are merely "Historical" with nothing going on.
Based on what I know about one of the states in question, I'm thinking that "Active and Passed" means they have both a passed bill and an active bill that isn't passed. Though I'd think they'd call that "Passed and Current" to match their other nomenclature.