By Dan Russo
Editorial
Iowa’s farmers are now in the midst of the 2026 corn and soybean harvest. A lot of times when something breaks or has functional issues out in the field, farmers like to try to fix it themselves on the spot or with the help of local, independently owned repair shops.
Doing these jobs yourself or with assistance from neighbors or local repair shops is usually cheaper and can minimize delay. The most modern farm equipment requires computers, software and an internet connection to work properly. This is complicated by the fact that for years, major manufacturers have made it almost impossible to use anyone but official dealer personnel to make repairs. They have enforced this with software locks, restrictions on access to tools and other tactics.
In April, Iowa Farmer’s Union (IFU), a grassroots organization representing family farms, praised the Iowa House’s effort to address the situation by passing a bipartisan “Right to Repair” bill (H.F. 2763).
“Farmers Union has been a longtime advocate of Right to Repair issues,” said Aaron Lehman, IFU president and fifth-generation farmer “… For decades, farmers have traditionally often repaired their own farm equipment. Now, farmers are finding they need costly and time-consuming permissions to fix their machines. When a farmer attempts to install a replacement part on a modern tractor, the manufacturer’s software can refuse to recognize it. The equipment shuts down and/or indicates error codes in the diagnostic system until a dealer sends a costly repair technician with proprietary pairing software.”
“If the farmer has the skill and purchases a perfectly good replacement part, nothing should stand in their way of making their own repair and getting back to work,” said Lehman. “Software gatekeepers should stay off the farm unless invited.”
The Iowa repair bill was sent to the state senate, but has yet to be passed. In July, however, a major legal victory aided farmers in this cause.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), along with five states, entered into a settlement in an antitrust lawsuit against farm equipment manufacturer Deere & Company that will ensure farmers can enjoy the right to repair their own John Deere tractors and farm equipment.
“The FTC’s settlement requires Deere — for the next 10 years and under the supervision of the FTC and plaintiff states — to provide farmers and independent repair providers with the same equipment repair resources, including applicable software capabilities, that it currently provides to authorized Deere dealers,” states an FTC press release
The settlement resolves the FTC and states’ joint lawsuit against Deere, which alleged that Deere used unlawful practices to limit the ability of farmers and independent repair providers to perform repairs on Deere farm equipment, according to a statement from the FTC. The legal victory is good, but is a temporary and incomplete fix to a problem which is hurting farmers and increasing agricultural product costs.
Ahead of this year’s election, Iowa’s four bishops are joining all the U.S. bishops in promoting the Church’s perspective on faithful citizenship. I believe Catholics should support Right to Repair legislation because it advances subsidiarity, a concept at the heart of Catholic Social Teaching. Professor Andreas Widmer of the Catholic University of America provides a definition: “By the principle subsidiarity, the Catholic Church means that higher groups in society should not take over tasks that lower groups would like to perform, unless the lower group asks for help. In other words, social functions should occur at the lowest possible level so that individuals and groups have a true sense of purpose.”
In this case, obviously, the “social function” is farming and the “lower group” is farmers. We need comprehensive Right to Repair legislation to be passed at the state and federal levels. Iowa’s legislators can lead the way. Establishing this legislative framework for farm equipment in Iowa would mirror the laws and open industry standards that already exist for passenger cars and trucks. Voters can ask their state senators, many of whom are up for re-election, to address the issue this campaign season.
Dan Russo, editor
