John Deere North American Farmer Free Download Full Version
Achill Baldwin
In the 2024 Canadian budget published April 16, the government announced plans to review and possibly amend the Copyright Modernization Act in order to introduce right to repair legislation, according to a blog by Canadian technology, copyright, privacy and AI lawyer Barry Sookman.
Consultations on interoperability will be launched in June, it says. There are already 2 private members bills that address right to repair, Bill C-244 and Bill C-294 both currently in the Canadian Senate.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs have asked Deere for structured data available on its EQUIP system. Farmers asked the court to modify deadlines as they wait for Deere to provide requested data, claiming Deere has been intentionally delaying the release of information.
"Deere is attempting to run the clock out on plaintiffs and deny their experts the time needed to discover and analyze critical structured data concerning Deere and authorized dealer pricing for parts and repair services that are critically important to establishing class-wide damages and antitrust liability," the farmers said in their motion.
Because Deere claimed only authorized dealers can produce data, subpoenas requesting information were served to over 20 authorized Deere dealers, collectively operating over 700 locations across the country. In January 2024, Deere said it had reached an agreement to provide information from 16 dealers.
Farmers requested 6 months to analyze the data once released to them and proposed a 6-month extension on Jan. 25, 2024. Deere countered with a 3-month extension and ultimately agreed to a 4-month extension on Feb. 13, 2024.
In a January committee meeting, Sen. Robert Karnes and Phil Reale, a lobbyist representing Deere, said the bill would be unprofitable for OEMs without a parts markup. The Senate Rules Committee was in disagreement over how involved the West Virginia government should be in right to repair. When the bill was sent to the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, it removed all language that manufacturers were concerned about, according to the lead sponsor of the bill, Sen. Bill Hamilton.
In a recent development to the Right to Repair topic, CBC News reported that Canadian politician and Member of Legislative Assembly, Robert Henderson introduced an amendment (Bill 110) to the Farm Machinery Dealers and Vendors Act during the fall session of the provincial legislature. That bill, which came up for discussion in mid-January, would require that manufacturers provide farmers with repair manuals for free and supply parts as well as software and tools at a fair price.
According to John Schmeiser, chief operating officer of North American Equipment Dealers Association (NAEDA), Prince Edward Island, which has an estimated population of around 175,000, has just 4 dealers.
Daily Journal reported on Jan. 23, 2024 that Indiana State Rep. Robb Greene, R-Shelbyville, introduced House Bill 1155, which mandates farm equipment manufacturers in Indiana, such as John Deere, to grant Hoosiers the right to repair. The bill requires manufacturers to offer service manuals, parts, tools, and software necessary for repairs to agriculture equipment owners and independent service providers, bypassing restrictions on manufacturer-exclusive servicing.
U.S. District Judge Iain Johnston rejected Deere's efforts to dismiss the consolidated lawsuits accusing it of violating U.S. antitrust laws. According to the report, the judge noted that the plaintiffs had met legal thresholds to pursue their claims. The reports states:
"According to the complaint's allegations, Deere has the ultimate control of the repair services market," Johnston wrote in his 89-page order. "These allegations are not mere legal conclusions. The complaint is chock-full of factual allegations to support this conclusion."
On October 18, the House of Commons passed C-244, An Act to amend the Copyright Act (diagnosis, maintenance and repair), sponsored by Liberal MP Wilson Miao. With support from all parties, the bill passed third reading in the House and will be considered by the Senate later this fall.
Some witnesses at the standing committee raised concerns over health and safety, cybersecurity and environmental risks that may result from the circumvention of TPMs and the repair of products. They asked for the exclusion of certain categories of products from the application of Bill C-244. I sincerely appreciate that these industry representatives voiced their concern during the study of this bill for our legislative process.
The Copyright Act is a law of general application, the purpose of which is to grant exclusive rights over creative works. It is more desirable that these concerns be addressed in regimes that already regulate those categories of products. Bill C-244 would not prevent these regimes from regulating repairs or addressing issues that may arise in the repair of certain products.
The article states, "Under the act, known as HB 4673, tractors, trailers, combines, sprayers, tillage equipment, baler, or other personal property, including the digital electronics embedded or attached to the equipment being used on a farm or ranch are included."
Ben Winslow of KSTU-FOX 13 reports Utah Sen. Ron Winterton has filed a right to repair bill that would override some agreements tee, Winslow's story says, adding that several lawmakers, including Rep. Sephanie Gricius, R-Eagle Mountain and Sen. Jennifer Plumb, D-Salt Lake City, offered their support. Other lawmakers said they wanted to see electronics such as iPhones added to the bill. Sen. Winterton says he is in favor of focusing on farm equipment and trucks before broadening the bill to include other products.
According to the article, the Utah Farm Bureau says it believes Sen. Winterton is well-intentioned with his legislation but notes it has worked to secure memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with 5 major farm equipment manufacturers to broaden the ability to get equipment fixed quickly. Spencer Gibbons, CEO of the Utah Farm Bureau Federation, says the group would prefer to have the MOUs underway before considering state regulation.
Michigan Farm News reports the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) has launched a new tool for members to provide feedback or report a disagreement with equipment manufacturers that are operating under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the organization. At present, this includes Claas, Kubota, John Deere, CNH and AGCO. The PDF form asks members to provide some basic contact information, the manufacturer involved in the issue and specific manufacturer feedback or details about an unresolved problem. Members are instructed to save the completed form and email it to r2rsu...@fb.org, the article says.
According to a press release from U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger's office, the U.S. House Agriculture Committee introduced legislation to guarantee farmers the right to repair their own equipment and "end burdensome restrictions on the repair market."
According to the release, The Agriculture Right to Repair Act defines what type of information Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are required to provide to make repair accessible. If the OEM does not have the digital or physical tools available, they are required to provide sufficient information to create the tools. Additionally, the bill gives the Federal Trade Commission the ability to enforce these requirements and the ability to make a rule to assist in the implementation of these requirements.
NewsDakota.com reported the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) affirmed in a letter to the National Farmers Union (NFU) that the Clean Air Act cannot be used as a basis to restrict independent repair of farm equipment.
McDonald's out-of-order ice cream machines have become a standing joke. Not as funny is the extent to which McDonald's will go to fight R2R issues, including the use of illegitimate tactics. Lessiter Media Founder and Senior Editor Frank Lessiter shares the McDonald's story in his latest blog post because of its similarities with the farm equipment R2R situation and how the approach McDonald's took led to it facing a lawsuit for $900 million.
Progressive Farmer reports that Judge Iain D. Johnston, the federal judge in the John Deere right to repair antitrust case, will hold a hearing on several key motions in the coming weeks. Johnston advised attorneys on both sides to agree to a hearing date.
According to the article, one motion to be addressed at the hearing is Deere's request that the court rule on facts already presented before a trial can be held. Johnston also raised questions about Deere's 2022 motion alleging that the plaintiffs failed to identify a co-conspirator in the complaint, the story adds, which is pursuant to a Supreme Court ruling stating indirect purchasers, such as the farmer plaintiffs, that do not buy product directly from a company, such as John Deere, have no legal standing to recover damages in antitrust cases. Regarding that motion, the judge said the issue was unclear, Progressive Farmer reports.
Claas of America announced it has joined with the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that provides farmers and ranchers confirmation of their right to repair their own equipment. Claas joins equipment makers Kubota, John Deere, CNH and AGCO in what is the fifth such MOU.
In a June 8 report, the Public Interest Research Group claimed that Michigan's House Bill 4673 would help dealers deal with technician shortages. The bill, if passed, would "require certain original equipment manufacturers and authorized repair providers of agricultural equipment to make diagnostic, maintenance, and repair parts, tools, and documentation available to independent repair providers and owners of that equipment; and to provide remedies."
Senate Bills 341 and 342 and House Bills 4650 and 4651 would give farmers and independent service technicians access to the same diagnostics, information and parts that are available to agricultural equipment dealers.
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