Money’s Farm Repair Bill Lets Old Agreements Win

The text as introduced · 1,446 words

89R13496 BCH-D

By: Money
H.B. No. 4362

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the diagnosis, maintenance, and repair of

electronics-enabled implements of agriculture.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Texas Agricultural

Right to Repair Act.

SECTION 2. Subtitle C, Title 5, Business & Commerce Code, is

amended by adding Chapter 121 to read as follows:

CHAPTER 121. DIAGNOSIS, MAINTENANCE, AND REPAIR OF

ELECTRONICS-ENABLED IMPLEMENTS OF AGRICULTURE

Sec. 121.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:

(1) "Authorized repair provider" means a person that

has an arrangement with an original equipment manufacturer under

which the original equipment manufacturer grants to the person a

license to use a trade name, service mark, or other proprietary

identifier for the purposes of offering diagnosis, maintenance, or

repair services for an electronics-enabled implement of

agriculture on behalf of the person or the original equipment

manufacturer. The term includes an original equipment manufacturer

that offers diagnosis, maintenance, or repair services for the

digital electronic equipment that the original equipment

manufacturer manufactures or offers for sale.

(2) "Commonly available" means any item that is:

(A) commercially available for purchase from

more than one seller; and

(B) not solely made available by an original

equipment manufacturer for use on the original equipment

manufacturer's products.

(3) "Digital electronic equipment" means any product

that depends for the product's functioning, wholly or partly, on

digital electronics embedded in or attached to the product.

(4) "Documentation" means any manual, diagram,

reporting output, service code description, schematic, library of

diagnosed issues, or other information used in the diagnosis,

maintenance, or repair of an electronics-enabled implement of

agriculture.

(5) "Electronics-enabled implement of agriculture"

means equipment that:

(A) is designed for agricultural purposes;

(B) is exclusively used by the owner of the

equipment in the conduct of the agricultural operations of the

owner; and

(C) depends for the equipment's functioning,

wholly or partly, on digital electronic equipment.

(6) "Embedded software" means a programmable

instruction provided on firmware delivered with an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture.

(7) "Fair and reasonable terms" means, with respect to

making available a part, tool, software, or documentation, making

the part, tool, software, or documentation available at a cost and

on terms equivalent to the lowest cost and most favorable terms

offered by an original equipment manufacturer to an authorized

repair provider, including:

(A) in general, with respect to costs, making

available any discount, rebate, or financial incentive the original

equipment manufacturer offers to an authorized repair provider;

(B) in general, with respect to other terms,

ensuring the terms:

(i) include equivalent methods of

timeliness of delivery of the part, tool, software, or

documentation that the original equipment manufacturer offers to an

authorized repair provider;

(ii) do not impose on an owner or

independent repair provider any substantial obligation to use or

put a restriction on the use of the part, tool, software, or

documentation to diagnose, maintain, or repair an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture, including a

condition that the owner or independent repair provider become an

authorized repair provider or a requirement that a part or tool be

registered, paired with, or approved by the original equipment

manufacturer before the part or tool is operational; and

(iii) prohibit an original equipment

manufacturer or an authorized repair provider from imposing any

additional cost or burden that is not reasonably necessary or is

designed to be an impediment on an owner or independent repair

provider;

(C) with respect to making available

documentation, making documentation available at no cost, except

that an original equipment manufacturer may charge the reasonable

actual cost of preparing and sending a copy of the documentation

when the documentation is requested in physical printed form; and

(D) with respect to making available software

tools, making the software tools available:

(i) at no cost;

(ii) without requiring authorization or

Internet access;

(iii) without imposing impediments to

access or use in the course of effecting the diagnosis,

maintenance, or repair of an electronics-enabled implement of

agriculture; and

(iv) in a manner that does not impair the

efficient and cost-effective diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of

an electronics-enabled implement of agriculture to enable full

functionality of the implement.

(8) "Firmware" means a software program or set of

instructions programmed on an electronics-enabled implement of

agriculture or on a part for the implement that allows the implement

or part to communicate with a networked product or system or with

other computer hardware, including any relevant patch or fix made

by the original equipment manufacturer of the implement or part.

(9) "Independent repair provider" means a person that:

(A) is not an authorized repair provider of an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture; and

(B) provides diagnosis, maintenance, or repair

services for the electronics-enabled implement of agriculture.

(10) "Original equipment manufacturer" means a person

that manufactures an electronics-enabled implement of agriculture

and sells, leases, or otherwise supplies the implement to any other

person.

(11) "Owner" means a person that owns or leases an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture other than the

original equipment manufacturer of the implement.

(12) "Part" means any component or subcomponent of an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture that is sold,

supplied, or otherwise made available by an original equipment

manufacturer for the purposes of maintaining, repairing, or

diagnosing the implement.

(13) "Tool" means a software program, including a

software update, hardware implement, or other apparatus used for

repair-related diagnostic testing, maintenance, or repair of an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture. The term includes

software or another mechanism that provides, programs, or pairs a

new part, calibrates functionality, or performs any other function

required to bring the implement to a fully functional condition.

(14) "Trade secret" has the meaning assigned by 18

U.S.C. Section 1839, as that section existed on January 1, 2025.

Sec. 121.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies to an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture sold or leased in this

state.

Sec. 121.003. REQUIREMENTS FOR ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT

MANUFACTURERS. An original equipment manufacturer shall make

available on fair and reasonable terms to any owner or independent

repair provider:

(1) any part, tool, software, or documentation,

including any updates to information or embedded software, for that

equipment or part; and

(2) for equipment containing an electronic security

lock or other security-related function, any part, tool, or

documentation required to disable or enable an electronic security

lock or other security-related function of an electronics-enabled

implement of agriculture.

Sec. 121.004. PART REPLACEMENT; ACCESSIBILITY. An original

equipment manufacturer shall ensure that any part required by the

original equipment manufacturer's electronics-enabled implement of

agriculture can be replaced without causing damage to the implement

using:

(1) a commonly available tool; or

(2) a tool that is not commonly available that is made

available to owners or independent repair providers by the original

equipment manufacturer on fair and reasonable terms.

Sec. 121.005. CONSTRUCTION OF CHAPTER. Nothing in this

chapter may be construed to:

(1) require an original equipment manufacturer to

divulge a trade secret to an owner or an independent repair

provider, except as necessary to make available any necessary part,

tool, software, or documentation on fair and reasonable terms as

required by this chapter;

(2) alter the terms of an agreement between an

original equipment manufacturer and an authorized repair provider,

except with respect to any provision of an agreement that would

limit the obligations of an original equipment manufacturer under

this chapter;

(3) require an authorized repair provider to make any

part, tool, software, or documentation relating to an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture available on fair and

reasonable terms, unless the authorized repair provider is the

original equipment manufacturer of the implement;

(4) require an original equipment manufacturer to

provide any part or equipment solely used in the development of the

manufacturer's products; or

(5) allow:

(A) any modification that permanently

deactivates a safety notification system when an

electronics-enabled implement of agriculture is being repaired;

(B) access to any function of a tool that enables

the owner or independent repair provider to change the settings of

an electronics-enabled implement of agriculture so as to bring the

equipment permanently out of compliance with any applicable safety

or emissions laws;

(C) the evasion of emissions laws or copyright

laws; or

(D) any other illegal modification activities.

Sec. 121.006. DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICE. A violation of

this chapter is a deceptive trade practice in addition to the

practices described by Subchapter E, Chapter 17, and is actionable

under that subchapter.

SECTION 3. To the extent of a conflict between Chapter 121,

Business & Commerce Code, as added by this Act, and a provision of

an agreement entered into before the effective date of this Act, the

provision of the agreement prevails.

SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.