Colorado is the First US State to Pass a Right-to-repair Law for Farmers

upstart writes:

John Deere warns about the "unintended consequences" stemming from the new legislation:

The right to repair movement just got its first major win in Colorado as the state will likely become the first to establish a law designed to protect the farmers' right to repair their own equipment. Big manufacturing companies are not happy, but the law is expected to be signed soon.

Starting January 1, 2024, manufacturers of agricultural equipment will have to provide Colorado farmers everything they need to repair machinery by themselves. Denver legislators recently approved the first-ever proposal turning right-to-repair principles into law with a majority vote (44 to 16), after the same law was approved by the Senate last month.

The bill is now on the governor's desk, where Jared Polis is expected to approve the bi-partisan proposal within 10 days. The Consumer Right To Repair Agricultural Equipment requires manufacturers to provide parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, documentation, repair manuals and other resources to independent repair providers and owners of farming machinery, giving them the ability to fix broken stuff without needing to go through official resellers and repair services.

The bill folds agricultural equipment into the existing consumer right-to-repair statutes of Colorado, which states that a manufacturer's failure to comply is a "deceptive trade practice." Manufacturers are not obliged to "divulge any trade secrets" to independent repair services and owners, the statutes say. The bill was later amended to clarify that repair providers and owners are not authorized to make modifications to equipment that permanently deactivate safety measures or modify carbon emissions.

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