Groups including Auto Care Association, SEMA, CAR Coalition, MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers and others call for passage during next U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee markup session.
In a letter July 8 to members of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, 25 groups called on the committee to pass H.R. 906, The Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair Act (REPAIR Act), at its next committee markup session.
According to the letter, the legislation, “…would preserve consumer access to high quality and affordable vehicle repair by ensuring that vehicle owners and their repairer of choice have equal access to repair and maintenance tools, components, and data.”
Last November, the House Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce approved the legislation by a voice vote during a subcommittee markup session. The passage at the subcommittee level put the legislation before the full House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The letter continues, “The independent aftermarket is a critical economic engine in every congressional district and state across the nation, with more than 4,500,000 employees and a fiscal impact of more than $600 billion annually. The REPAIR Act eliminates an existential threat to these jobs and the economy, while ensuring a robust ecosystem of repair options. Consumers will be able to select their repair facility of choice and have access to a variety of aftermarket parts. Independent repair shops will continue to be able to provide timely and quality repair and maintenance choices to their customers.”
“We urge you to support this legislation and move it through the committee as soon as possible,” the letter concluded.
Groups signing the letter included:
- Auto Care Association
- MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers
- The Consumer Access to Repair (CAR) Coalition
- Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA)
- National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB)
- U.S. PIRG
- Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA)
- Transport Workers Union of America (TWU)
- CAWA – Representing the Automotive Parts Industry
- American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Repair.org
- Auto Care Alliance (ACA)
- Jiffy Lube Association of Franchisees (JLAF)
- Battery Council International (BCI)
- New Jersey Gasoline, C-Store, Automotive Association (NJGCA)
- Commercial Vehicle Solutions Network (CVSN)
- Automotive Aftermarket Association Southeast (AAAS)
- Alliance of State Automotive Aftermarket Associations (ASAAA)
- Tire Industry Association (TIA)
- Automotive Maintenance and Repair Association (AMRA)
- Minnesota Service Station Association
- iFixit
- Association of Diesel Specialists
- Preventative Automotive Maintenance Association (PAMA)
- American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA)