We seldom use No-Till Farmer pages for an article unrelated to reduced tillage. But that’s the case this month with the right-to-repair (R2R) article.

R2R is a controversial topic we felt needed extensive coverage and a subject that the general ag media doesn’t appear to have the courage to report on due to worries about picking sides with the big equipment makers and their advertising budgets. But as you’ll see from our 3-page article, Lessiter Media is uniquely positioned to tell the story from both sides, since we also publish Farm Equipment, a business magazine for dealers and manufacturers. 

Controversy Continues

In addition to our “Point/Counterpoint” article, several other developments in the R2R controversy are worth sharing.

1. Colorado passed the country’s first R2R legislation in mid-April. This ruling is at odds with three of the major machinery manufacturers who’ve inked agreements with major ag groups with the promise not to pursue this kind of legislation. Taking effect in 2024, Colorado’s law requires manufacturers to provide farmers with the needed diagnostic tools, software documents and manuals to repair their own equipment. 

It’s a situation manufacturers and dealers hoped to avoid, preferring no laws at all or federal R2R legislation rather than state-by-state rulings. Similar legislation has been introduced in a dozen states.

2. In regard to the American Farm Bureau Federation Memorandum of Understanding agreements between Deere, Case IH and New Holland, lawyers say the language is too vague to be enforced. These agreements also won’t keep farmers or ag groups from continuing courtroom and legislative battles.

3. A recent Public Interest Research Group and National Farmers Union survey shows farmers are losing an average of $3,348 per year due to repair downtime and manufacturer restrictions. The survey pegged the overall loss to U.S. farmers at more than $4.2 billion per year for downtime and excessive repair costs.

An Ongoing Battle

There’s certainly more to come in the R2R dispute and the fight appears to just be getting started. For more on this controversial issue, check out more than 100 comments from growers that were part of our grower R2R survey. To share your thoughts on R2R, email them to me at lessitef@lessitermedia.com.