The Daily Yonder | Colorado’s Right to Repair Law Could Save Farmers Time, Money and Spur Local Business
“We’re gonna return a lot of money to the farmer’s pocket and reduce the burden that they suffer,” said Farm Action’s Joe Van Wye.
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Farmers should have the right to fix their own tractors.
Multinational farm equipment manufacturers like John Deere are imposing severe restrictions on who can repair the products they sell.
Prevented from fixing their own tractors, farmers are often forced into long equipment transports and wait-times for repairs. This can result in losses of tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in potential yields.
Manufacturers are also crushing independent repair shops and critically harming once-vibrant rural economies by forbidding everyone except a few authorized dealers from accessing necessary diagnostic tools.
Restoring the right to repair will help us reclaim the spirit of self-sufficiency and innovation in rural America. It’s an exciting time to join the Right to Repair movement, which has gained momentum at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in Congress, and in state houses across the country.
The Farm Action team has been pounding the pavement from state to state, building the momentum needed to pass legislation restoring consumer rights and leveling the playing field for small rural businesses. Recently, Farm Action Fund board member Wes Shoemyer testified at the Missouri state house, and Farm Action Local Leader Willie Cade published an op ed busting the myths corporations have tried to use to defeat this legislation.
The result of these efforts was a landmark success: In May, Colorado became the first state in the nation to pass a law enshrining the right to repair for agriculture.
On the national level, the Agriculture Right to Repair Act was introduced in the 117th U.S. Senate to restore innovation, flexibility, and economic opportunity to farmers and rural communities. This legislation would counterbalance the excessive power consolidated by global equipment manufacturers by requiring them to share basic diagnostic and repair tools with equipment owners and repair shops.
The Agriculture Right to Repair Act is part of a broader right to repair movement. In every sector of our economy, consumer rights have been stripped away by global corporations, which have discovered that monopolizing the repair market can be much more profitable than new equipment sales.
With these repair restrictions, monopoly corporations are attacking independent repair shops — small businesses that once flourished in rural America by providing a local and essential service to their communities. It’s time to restore consumer rights and level the playing field for small rural businesses.
After Farm Action and other farm organizations across the country filed a petition, the FTC opened an investigation into John Deere’s practices.
The 43-page petition noted that John Deere’s abusive restrictions on tractor and other farm equipment amounted to “unfair and deceptive practices.”
An FTC investigation would have the authority to subpoena Deere’s records and executives.
If the FTC determines that Deere has violated antitrust laws, it can order the manufacturer to cease withholding information, obtain a federal injunction declaring their practices unlawful and prohibiting them from continuing to restrict repairs, and even obtain monetary penalties.
Colorado’s law is a big and important victory, but we won’t rest until the right to repair has been restored in the other 49 states. With your support, our team can keep fighting for farmers and independent businesses across the nation.
“We’re gonna return a lot of money to the farmer’s pocket and reduce the burden that they suffer,” said Farm Action’s Joe Van Wye.
Farm Action Local Leader Willie Cade was invited to the signing of a Colorado law enshrining farmers’ right to fix their own tractors.
Willie Cade, a Farm Action Local Leader and right to repair advocate, is concerned Deere is only agreeing to the memorandum to publicly placate critics.
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