I don’t want to distribute apps, I just want to be able to install whatever I want on the hardware I own.

I feel the same way, but can you explain how a VPN would help achieve that in the face of Google’s proposed developer verification scheme?

My first thought reading this was that the “cool down” period to install (side load apps) would also be waived.

That’s not what this says though.

I’m basing this on OP’s comment

Someone in Cuba or Iran can keep installing APKs with no new restrictions, but devs will suffer.

Why do people seem to think ungoogled won’t just become ‘unverified’ and the world won’t just keep spinning as usual?

This sucks for anyone with a stock phone, sure.

Oh no, I can’t use my banking app!

Oh no! 🙄 Guess you’ll actively have to remember your balance. The horror.

I already can’t access many (and growing to MOST) government services without my government’s “my gov” app.

The mygov app won’t install/run on my devices as it is not a stock Android OS.

I’m LITERALLY unable to gain access to many government services without having to run a less secure “stock” device.

This isn’t an “oh my, what an inconvenience” situation over here.

It becomes an actual life limiting event.

What hellhole is this when the US typically has no such requirement?

If this is a country in the EU, y’all need to step up and tell US to fuck off,

My only point was:

these restrictions have the capacity to carry real impacts on people that amount to more than mild inconveniences…

Denmark here. Both MobilePay (a national phone payment app that works for private to private where you just send to a phone number and in place of credit card payment in shops and webshops) and MitID (national authentication app used for logging in to everything regarding public services and quite a few private services too) have severe problems outside of Play Integrity. MitID straight up doesn’t work and MobilePay fails an integrity check once in a while forcing a reinstall.

These two apps are integral to life in Denmark. MobilePay has no backup measure but MitID has physical code viewers you can get. But that is not something the common user would go out of their way go figure out.

MobilePay used to work just fine for me, until a couple months back. My plan is to get some crappy used phone, install MobilePay on that and use RustDesk to gain access from my main LineageOS phone.

Thankfully over here we authenticate with banks, and the 2 banks I use work just fine with no play services.

Computers still exist and they still have browsers and they still work for your bank’s website.

Even in the browser of an unverified phone.

And how am I going to get past the bank's custom 2FA which requires the phone app?

is this the only way your bank does 2FA? mine also allows for use of physical security keys like yubikey etc

There’s only 4 Dutch banks that still support authenticating without an app, and iirc one of them announced they’re going app-only not long ago:

https://www.bank.nl/kennisbank/bankieren-zonder-app/

You use a different bank. Honestly, if people voted with their feet, these issues wouldn’t be as common