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Raises Concern about Company Undermining Right-to-Repair Agreements, Violating Clean Air Act
Repair restrictions like John Deere’s hurt farmers and consumers across the country; cost American farmers $4.2 billion per year
“John Deere has repeatedly interfered with farmers’ ability to repair the equipment they own, including by blocking independent repairs to maximize profit, negotiating an MOU in bad faith, and failing to inform farmers of their rights in potential violation of the Clean Air Act.”
October 4, 2024 - Boston, MA – On Thursday, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) wrote to Deere & Company (John Deere) accusing the company of undermining its own “right-to-repair” agreements and evading its responsibilities under the Clean Air Act by failing to grant its customers the right to repair their own agricultural equipment.
John Deere restricts farmers from repairing broken equipment themselves, even when they have the knowledge and tools to do so, instead forcing them to wait for weeks until a John Deere technician is available, and risking missed crop windows on which farmers’ livelihoods rely. In Massachusetts, there are just three John Deere dealerships for 470,000 acres of farm operations, or 2,400 farms per dealership. Farmers nationwide lose an average of $3,348 per year “directly tied to downtime and repair restrictions imposed by equipment manufacturers.” Repair restrictions cost U.S. farmers $4.2 billion per year.
“While John Deere’s profits spike thanks to this strategy, farmers suffer,” wrote Senator Warren.
In fact, by overcharging for repair services, John Deere has seen its profits streaming in. Since 2020 the company has seen a 270% increase in profits, despite labor strikes, supply disruptions, a drop in sales, and a global pandemic.
After years of legal battles, in January 2023, John Deere signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) promising to provide farmers and independent repair shops with the diagnostic tools and information they need to make repairs to their machines. But the MOU appeared to be a veiled attempt to hold off the passage of “right-to-repair” legislation. In exchange for pledges to provide the information and tools needed for farmers to make repairs, John Deere secured a politically valuable promise from the American Farm Bureau Federation to encourage American farmers not to introduce, promote, or support federal or state right-to-repair legislation that imposed obligations beyond the MOU’s commitments.
John Deere is not upholding its side of the bargain, and appears to have negotiated the MOU in bad faith. Rather than allow farmers meaningful opportunity to repair their equipment, John Deere has provided inadequate tools and disclosures.
The software tool offered to farmers redacts or obfuscates functions and information required to complete repairs. Further, earlier this year, John Deere admitted to omitting a legally required addendum about repair rights from its manuals.
The exclusion of this information may violate the Clean Air Act, which requires manufacturers to “provide in boldface type on the first page of the written maintenance instructions notice that maintenance, replacement, or repair … may be performed by any automotive repair establishment or individual.” The EPA warned John Deere that its manuals were not in compliance with EPA regulations.
“John Deere has repeatedly interfered with farmers’ ability to repair the equipment they own, including by blocking independent repairs to maximize profit, negotiating an MOU in bad faith, and failing to inform farmers of their rights in potential violation of the Clean Air Act,” wrote Senator Warren. “Deere’s attempts to stave off right-to-repair reforms that would save American farmers $4.2 billion per year are disgraceful.”
Senator Warren asked John Deere to respond to questions related to the company’s repair restrictions and apparent failure to comply with the law by October 17, 2024.
Senator Warren has repeatedly sought to bolster competition and fight back against costly restrictions on repairs for cars, military equipment, and other goods:
- In September 2024, Senator Elizabeth Warren sent two letters regarding the costly restrictions imposed on the Department of Defense that bar the military from repairing its own military equipment and instead force it to pay billions of dollars extra to military contractors.
- In July 2024, Senator Elizabeth Warren included a provision in the Senate Fiscal Year 2025 NDAA that would require contractors to provide DoD with “fair and reasonable” access to repair materials.
- In August 2023, Senator Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), celebrated the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reversing course and allowing enforcement of Massachusetts’ pro-consumer Right to Repair law.
- In June 2023, Senator Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) called on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to reverse its course after it sent a recent letter to auto manufacturers, advising them not to comply with Massachusetts’ Right to Repair law.
- In February 2022, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Angus King (I-Maine), and Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) urged the Department of Health and Human Services to move forward with the march-in petition submitted for the prostate cancer drug Xtandi.
- In July 2021, Senator Warren and Representative Doggett (D-Texas) sent a letter to the Department of Defense requesting information about steps taken to reduce costs of DoD-funded prescription drugs and medical products.
Source: Senator Elizabeth Warren
