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Right to Repair legislation introduced in Michigan

Michigan House Agriculture Committee Chair Reggie Miller has introduced legislation that would give farmers the ability to repair their own equipment.

The Agricultural Equipment Repair Act bans manufacturers from restricting farm equipment maintenance to authorized service providers.

Michigan Farmers Union President Bob Thompson says his organization supports the legislation.

“We want to make sure that those that do have the expertise, knowledge, and ability have the proper tools and software in order to actually make the repairs where they can,” he says.

He tells Brownfield Right to Repair legislation will take the recent Memorandum of Understandings signed between equipment manufacturers and the American Farm Bureau Federation further.

“We want to see the right to repair codified so that it’s an assurance that we will always have that right,” he says.

Colorado recently became the first state to enact Right to Repair measures and similar bills have also been proposed in at least 16 states across the country. 

The bill has been referred to the House Ag Committee.