Fiscal Summary

NOT SIGNIFICANT

Bill Summary

RIGHT TO REPAIR

This bill requires a manufacturer of agricultural equipment or agricultural equipment plans to, with fair and reasonable terms and costs, for the purpose of providing services for agricultural equipment in this state, make available to an independent repair provider or owner of the manufacturer's equipment any documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, or, with owner authorization, data that are intended for use with the equipment or part, including updates to documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, or tools. This bill also requires a manufacturer to, with fair and reasonable terms and costs, with respect to agricultural equipment that contains an electronic security lock or other security-related function, make available to an independent repair provider and owner any documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, or, with owner authorization, data needed to reset the lock or function when disabled in the course of providing services. The manufacturer may make the documentation, parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, or, with owner authorization, data available to an independent repair provider and owner through appropriate secure release systems. Additionally, violating these provisions is an unlawful unfair or deceptive act.

However, this bill provides that the above provisions do not apply to an agricultural equipment part that is no longer available to the manufacturer and conduct that would require the manufacturer to divulge a trade secret. However, a manufacturer must not refuse to make available to an independent repair provider or owner any documentation, part, embedded software, firmware, tool, or, with owner authorization, data necessary to provide services on grounds that the documentation, part, embedded software, firmware, or tool itself is a trade secret.

This bill authorizes a manufacturer to redact documentation to remove trade secrets from the documentation before providing access to the documentation, if the usability of the redacted documentation for the purpose of providing services is not diminished.

This bill further authorizes a manufacturer to withhold information regarding a component, design, or functionality of, or process of developing, a part, embedded software, firmware, or a tool, if the information is a trade secret and the usability of the part, embedded software, firmware, or tool for the purpose of providing services is not diminished.

LIMIT ON LIABILITY

This bill provides that a manufacturer or equipment dealer is not liable for faulty or otherwise improper repairs provided by an independent repair provider or owner, including a faulty or otherwise improper repair that causes any of the following:

(1) Damage to the agricultural equipment that occurs during the repair;

(2) Indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages; or

(3) An inability to use, or a reduced functionality of, the agricultural equipment resulting from the faulty or otherwise improper repair.

This bill provides that a manufacturer that provides, with owner authorization, data to an independent repair provider in compliance with this bill is not liable to the owner, the independent repair provider, or another party for an action that the independent repair provider or another party takes while using or relying on the data.

MISCELLANEOUS

This bill provides that with respect to a contract or other arrangement, or renewal of a contract or existing arrangement that a manufacturer enters into on or after the effective date of this act, a contract term, provision, agreement, or language in the contract or arrangement that waives, avoids, restricts, or limits the manufacturer's obligations under this bill is void and unenforceable as a matter of law and public policy.

This bill also provides that, subject to the above provision, this bill does not:

(1) Alter the terms of a contract or other arrangement in force between a manufacturer and an authorized repair provider, including the performance or provision of warranty or recall repair work and an exclusivity or noncompete clause in a contract;

(2) Require a manufacturer to provide an independent repair provider or owner access to information, other than documentation, that the manufacturer provides to an authorized repair provider pursuant to a contract or other arrangement with the authorized repair provider, except as necessary to comply with this bill;

(3) Authorize an independent repair provider or owner to (i) make a modification to the agricultural equipment that deactivates a safety notification system, except as necessary to provide services, (ii) access a function of a tool that enables the independent repair provider or owner to change the settings for a piece of agricultural equipment in a manner that brings the equipment out of compliance with applicable state, federal, or local safety or emissions laws, except as necessary to provide services, (iii) evade emissions, copyright, trademark, or patent laws, or (iv) engage in other illegal equipment modification activity; or

(4) Exempt a manufacturer from a products liability claim that is otherwise authorized by law.