A week after Attorney General Kaul added the state of Wisconsin to a lawsuit against Deere & Company to protect farmers from unfair corporate tactics and and high repair costs, state Sen. Brad Pfaff introduced Right to Repair legislation.
Pfaff says the consumer protection proposal creates a right to repair agricultural equipment by requiring manufacturers to make things like repair documentation, data, parts and necessary tools available to owners and independent servicers at fair costs and terms — without surrendering trade secrets that would harm the manufacturers’ legitimate intellectual property rights.
“Wisconsin farmers deserve the right to repair their own equipment or do business with the mechanic of their choosing,” said Senator Pfaff. “This is about making sure our farmers can do what is best for them and their situation without unnecessary restrictions by large manufacturers. By opening up these monopolistic repair arrangements, Wisconsin can support farmers struggling with rising costs, increase competition among service providers, and create jobs in our local communities.”
As technology has become increasingly sophisticated over the years, farmers cannot perform many of the repairs — even minor ones — on their Deere equipment without relying on an authorized Deere dealership with exclusive access to proprietary software and diagnostic tools.
Wisconsin Farmers Union President Darin Von Ruden echoed his members’ frustration with the farm machinery giant’s monopoly practices.
“Farmers Union members have spoken out time and again that the lack of repair options is hurting their bottom line. Wisconsin Farmers Union supports Fair Repair and Right to Repair legislation that would allow farmers and independent mechanics access to diagnostic software, information, and other tools in order to repair modern equipment,” Von Ruden said. “We need to address the monopoly crisis in agriculture and to promote fair and competitive markets. Farmers deserve the Right to Repair their own equipment.”
Wisconsin joins Federal Trade Commission fight against Deere
Kaul announced last week that Wisconsin joined Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois in the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) lawsuit alleging the Iowa-based company has a monopoly on repairs which harms farmers by raising costs and delaying repairs on critical farm equipment, including tractors.
“This case is seeking to make the market for farming equipment repairs more competitive,” said Kaul in a news release. “When Wisconsin farmers need to get their farming equipment repaired, they should be able to get the repairs at a fair price, without unnecessary delay.”
Lina M. Khan, FTC chair said in a statement, “Illegal repair restrictions can be devastating for farmers who rely on affordable and timely repairs to harvest their crops and earn their income.
“The FTC’s action seeks to ensure that farmers across America are free to repair their equipment or use repair shops of their choice – lowering costs, preventing ruinous delays, and promoting fair competition for independent repair shops.”
This article originally appeared on Wisconsin State Farmer: Proposed legislation would allow WI farmers to fix repair at a fair cost
