Apple—Apple lobbied against right-to-repair legislation across multiple US states
From 2015-2024, Apple conducted extensive lobbying campaigns opposing right-to-repair legislation in multiple states including New York, Nebraska, Washington, Florida, and Oregon. The company spent millions on lobbying, made threats to withdraw products, and pushed for amendments to weaken proposed bills. Apple's tactics included hiring multiple lobbying firms, using trade associations to obscure direct opposition, and employing arguments about user safety and security to oppose consumer repair access.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Protection | -against | secondary | -0.50 |
| Right to Repair | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.725 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (high ×1.5) × confidence (0.64)
Evidence (2 signals)
Apple lobbied Florida legislators to weaken right-to-repair bill SB 1132
Emails obtained via public records request show Apple lobbyist Chris Dudley privately lobbied Florida lawmakers against Senate Bill 1132, pushing amendments to narrow requirements and strip individuals' ability to sue. Apple wanted manufacturers to only provide materials already given to 'authorized' repair techs. The lobbying succeeded as the bill failed to pass, with 15 Apple lobbyists on payroll in Florida alone.
Apple spent record $9.4 million on federal lobbying in 2022 including antitrust and right-to-repair
Apple increased federal lobbying spending by 44% in 2022 to nearly $9.4 million, a company record. The company spent nearly $2.9 million in Q4 2022 alone, more than any previous quarter. Apple's filing listed eight lobbyists on antitrust issues. Between 2010-2023, Apple spent $76.1 million on federal lobbying, not including extensive state-level lobbying in at least 48 states in 2023.