Consumer Right To Repair Agricultural Equipment

Usually, an owner of agricultural equipment must seek diagnostic, maintenance, or repair services of the equipment from the agricultural equipment manufacturer (manufacturer).

Starting January 1, 2024, the bill requires a manufacturer to provide parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, or documentation, such as diagnostic, maintenance, or repair manuals, diagrams, or similar information (resources), to independent repair providers and owners of the manufacturer's agricultural equipment to allow an independent repair provider or owner to conduct diagnostic, maintenance, or repair services on the owner's agricultural equipment.

The bill folds agricultural equipment into the existing consumer right-to-repair statutes, which statutes provide the following:

• A manufacturer's failure to comply with the requirement to provide resources is a deceptive trade practice;
• In complying with the requirement to provide resources, a manufacturer need not divulge any trade secrets to independent repair providers and owners; and
• Any new contractual provision or other arrangement that a manufacturer enters into that would remove or limit the manufacturer's obligation to provide resources to independent repair providers and owners is void and unenforceable ; and
• An independent repair provider or owner is not authorized to make modifications to agricultural equipment that permanently deactivate any safety notification system or bring the equipment out of compliance with safety or emissions laws or to engage in any conduct that would evade emissions, copyright, trademark, or patent laws.

(Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.)

(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)