10/22/2026
This is a lengthy and slightly chopped up version of this report. However this is a great summary of some of the battles we face as small independent repair shops and consumers in the automotive industry. As cars advanced, so does the technology built into them. For years small independent shops have struggled, gaining access to the information and software to be able to fix critical systems at a lesser rate than the manufacturer. We are constantly finding roadblocks within repair procedures and diagnostic capabilities simply because the information is “proprietary“, as is outlined in this report. This isn’t even the worst of it, manufacturers found out long ago If you can own the information you can control the market at least to a certain extent. As she stated most people don’t think when they go and purchase a new vehicle that their car can actually be listening, watching, and tracking you and sending that back to some data center to be used or sold. The world is changing and not all technology is bad but it is good to be aware so we can make the best decisions. The line between ownership personal property and information is constantly becoming blurred. Thank you to Washington for recognizing this potential monopoly and helping to stem the tide and bring something as simple as vehicle ownership back to the person making the payments. 
