The White House and consumer electronics giant Apple (AAPL) have become unlikely allies in pushing for a national “right to repair” law that would require manufacturers to support independent repair shops and consumers in fixing broken devices.

Lael Brainard, director of the National Economic Council, together with state officials and a representative from Apple, advocated for right-to-repair policies in a webinar broadcast Tuesday.

Apple “supports a uniform federal law that balances repairability with product integrity, data security, usability, and physical safety,” Brian Naumann, vice president of worldwide service for Apple, said at the event. “We think there will be real value in establishing a national standard.”

Apple’s participation was noteworthy because until recently, the company has lobbied against right-to-repair laws at the state level. That changed earlier this year when the iPhone maker came out in support of a California law signed this month that requires companies to supply repair manuals, tools, and parts to consumers and independent shops at reasonable prices. 

“It's huge that they're getting on board,” said Liz Chamberlain, director of sustainability at iFixit, a website that provides repair manuals, tutorials, and supports consumers repairing their own devices, and which co-sponsored the California law after negotiating with Apple.

Consumer advocacy groups have long argued that consumer electronic🐷s manufacturers have made it too difficult for people and independent shops to repair their products, forcing people to ♕throw away phones, computers, televisions, and other products that might otherwise be fixed. 

U.S. households spend  $1,767 on new electronics every year on average, a figure that could be reduced by $382 if people fixed their own stuff, according to a 2021 report by the Public Interest Research group, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization.

Companies have made repairs more difficult in a number of ways, and Apple was one of the biggest offenders in the eyes of consumer advocacy groups. People seeking to make simple repairs such as changing batteries on their iPhones have complained the process is made needlessly difficult by Apple’s decision to use special screws, gluing and soldering parts in place, and its past practice of restricting the sale of replacement parts. A 2022 PIRG report gave Apple an “F” rating on the repairability of its phones. 

Apple got on board the right-to-repair push as state-level repair efforts have gained momentum. In addition to California, Colorado and Minnesota have also recently passed laws requiring manufacturers to support people fixing their own devices.

“I think it was really strategic of them to recognize that if they didn't find a bill that they could live with—something that they support across the country—those were going to continue to pass in ways that didn't work for them,” Chamberlain said.

Apple’s support gave them a seat at the table when crafting California’s law, and they got a major concession in that their controversial “parts pairing” technology is still legal. The company embeds microchips in certain parts in their devices, and they won’t work properly until remotely authorized by Apple. This causes difficulties when, for example, you replace a broken iPhone screen with a screen from another phone of the same model.

“It means that Apple continues to maintain significant control over the repair market,” Chamberlain said. “I think it is a huge step forward. It's a big deal. It should make repairs cheaper, easier, and more available for everyone. But it does still allow Apple to operate in some of the ways they have been.”