LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- A U.S. senator takes to task the head of Deere and Company in a letter on Wednesday, accusing the company of violating the Clean Air Act and restricting farmers from fully repairing their own equipment while raising the costs of those repairs.

In a letter to Deere CEO John C. May, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., includes a list of 11 questions and asks for a response by Oct. 17, 2024.

Warren calls into question whether a memorandum of understanding signed by the America Farm Bureau Federation, Deere and four other farm equipment manufacturers on Jan. 8, 2023, resulted in increased access to diagnostic tools and other materials for farmers.

"But the MOU appeared to be a veiled attempt to stave off the passage of 'right-to-repair' legislation," Warren said in the letter.

"Rather than uphold their end of the bargain, John Deere has provided impaired tools and inadequate disclosures. In addition to costing farmers time and money, this refusal to provide meaningful right to repair likely indicates that John Deere may be violating the Clean Air Act by restricting repair of its products' emissions systems."

Warren told May the costs of parts and labor for repairing agriculture equipment have "nearly doubled." Since 2020, Warren said, those costs have "spiked" 41%.

"While demand for new machines goes up and down, John Deere keeps its profits streaming in by overcharging for repair services -- despite labor strikes, supply disruptions, a drop in sales, and a global pandemic, the company has experienced a 270% increase in profits since 2020," Warren said in the letter.

The increase in costs, the letter said, coincides with a trend toward an increasing amount of software and linked parts in farm equipment -- "a major mechanism through which manufacturers restrict independent repair."

Warren said Deere "appears to be using its control over this electronic software to force consumers to use only company- authorized repair services."

A John Deere spokesperson did not respond to DTN's request for comment on Thursday.

ABILITY TO DIAGNOSE

Without the ability to effectively diagnose or repair equipment problems, she said, farmers are "forced to wait for a John Deere technician to be available." This means farmers in remote areas often have to wait weeks for repair assistance.

"In Massachusetts, there are just three John Deere dealerships for 470,000 acres of farm operations," Warren said in the letter.

Warren told May the MOU that equipment companies including Deere signed in January 2023 "appears to have been entirely undermined by your company."

Warren points to a July 2023 report from the U.S. PIRG Education Fund. The organization compared the software tool offered to farmers -- Customer Service ADVISOR -- with those software tools provided to Deere-affiliated dealerships, which is known as the dealer-level service advisor.

"PIRG found that the tool available to farmers 'withholds, redacts or obfuscates functions and information required to independently complete many repairs.,'" Warren said in the letter.

That study found that the software tool given to farmers lacks three functions compared to the dealer-level tool.

That includes basic information needed to identify problems with equipment is either "withheld or difficult to find for independent" repair shops, Warren said in the letter.

Also, when it comes to troubleshooting the dealer tool has step-by-step guides not present in the farmer/independent repair shop version.

In addition, when it comes to repair authorization many parts are required to be paired electronically to modern machines. "Deere calls these drivers 'payload files' and they can only be installed or 'reprogrammed through dealer-level SA," Warren said in the letter.

NOTICE TO CUSTOMERS

On Feb. 12, 2024, John Deere sent a notice to customers alerting them the company discovered that a statement may be missing from equipment manuals: "(a) repair shop or person of the owner's choosing may maintain, replace, or repair emission control devices and systems with original or equivalent replacement parts."

Warren said in the letter that the exclusion of the statement in owner's manuals "not only undercuts farmers' ability to repair their equipment but may also be illegal."

The Clean Air Act directs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to require manufacturers to provide "any and all information" to make use of emissions diagnostics.

"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," Warren said in the letter.

"Repair restrictions like John Deere's hurt farmers and consumers across the country, who have shown overwhelming support for right-to-repair laws. Deere's attempts to stave off right-to-repair reforms that would save American farmers $4.2 billion per year are disgraceful."

Warren asks May several questions at the end of the letter, centered on whether Deere's written manuals and other materials now comply with federal law.

In addition, Warren questions May on whether all of Deere's engines now comply with the Clean Air Act.

The senator also asks May to provide a summary of discussions the company has had with the EPA since October 2022 on Clean Air Act compliance.

Warren also asks questions about the Customer Service ADVISOR product and whether it provides equipment owners with everything they need for repairs.

Warren asks May for information on John Deere lobbying efforts in the past five years, both in Washington, D.C., and across the country. In addition, May was asked about what actions John Deere has taken to help reduce repair costs for farmers.

Read more on DTN:

"Court Sides With Farmers Against Deere," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com

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