SCARBOROUGH (WGME)– Tuesday is Election Day, and among the issues that voters will decide is Question 4, which involves the so-called “Right to Repair.”

At issue is what information is shared with independent car repair shops.

Shops like Paulin’s have ways to get critical info from manufacturers about how to make car repairs, but they are worried that won’t always be the case.

Question 4 has been years in the making as new cars are getting more and more complex.

“We’re going to keep doing what we do as long as we can do it,” Paulin’s Tire and Auto Service Owner Mark Paulin said.

Places like Paulin’s use a special program to understand how to make repairs.

That company hashes out agreements with car manufacturers in order to get that information.

“So right now we have that. [But] as these newer cars are coming out, and they’re getting more complicated, and you’re essentially driving on four tires and a computer,” Paulin said.

Automakers have pledged to keep sharing that information.

But Paulin worries automakers could change their mind in the future and repairs will only happen at dealerships.

“They can’t have everything. They can’t fix all the cars. It’s impossible,” Paulin said.

If passed, Question 4 would require certain manufacturers to standardize vehicle on-board diagnostic systems and make those accessible to owners and independent shops. That would include the wireless data.

“If you take what’s the perceived problem, Question 4 does not solve that problem,” Rep. Tiffany Roberts (D-South Berwick) said.

Roberts is encouraging Mainers to vote “no.”

She’s worried the systems needed for this aren’t in place.

“It’s very problematic, and I don’t see how it’s going to get at the crux of the issue if access is needed,” Roberts said.

According to the state, enforcing Maine’s initiative may require the Attorney General to take court action, which could cost taxpayers.

Roberts points to Massachusetts, where residents overwhelmingly passed a similar measure in 2020, as a sign of what could come.

“That legislation has been in litigation since,” Roberts said.

Paulin thinks if there are any legal challenges, they could be sorted out by the time this question is really needed.

“There’s a lot of Mainers who are in the automotive industry. What are you going to say to them? You don’t have a job anymore?” Paulin said.

CBS13 News reached out to groups, like the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represent manufacturers.

But so far we haven’t received a response.