Bill · S. 3068· Senate(119-S-3068)
FARM Act
- Introduced
- 10/28/2025
- Last activity
- 10/28/2025 — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Sponsored by
- Peter Welch
- Cosponsors
- - 2 - 0
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
The bill requires original equipment manufacturers of farm equipment to provide owners and independent repair providers with the documentation, parts, software, firmware, and tools needed for diagnosis, maintenance, or repair on fair and reasonable terms. It also mandates that these manufacturers make generated farm equipment data available to owners or their authorized independent repair providers. Furthermore, the legislation permits the circumvention of certain technological copyright protections when performing repairs, security research, or modifications on farm equipment. Manufacturers are barred from stopping the offer of repair materials and must ensure parts can be replaced without causing damage using commonly available tools or fair terms. Finally, violations of the Act are treated as unfair or deceptive acts enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, which carries civil penalties for stopping the availability of repair materials.
Yes· 3 of 13
Would farmers be better off under this?+9
Significantly lowers financial and operational barriers for farmers by allowing them to independently repair their own equipment.
Would people in rural areas be better off under this?+8
Directly benefits rural and agricultural communities by ensuring local self-reliance in maintaining essential farm machinery.
Does this make it easier to run a small business?+7
The legislation heavily benefits independent mechanics, repair providers, and small family farms by ensuring fair access to tools, parts, and documentation.
The opposite
Would billionaires be better off under this?-2
Places restrictions on large original equipment manufacturers by prohibiting certain monopolistic repair policies.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
-
Access to Repair Materials and Data: Section 3(a) requires manufacturers to make documentation, parts, software, firmware, tools, and farm equipment data available to owners and independent repair providers on fair and reasonable terms. This is a positive step because it allows farmers and local independent mechanics to fix their own equipment without being forced to rely exclusively on expensive authorized dealers.
-
Fair Pricing and Terms for Tools and Documentation: Section 2(6) states that manufacturers cannot charge for documentation or digital tools, aside from the actual cost of physical preparation and shipping. This is beneficial for people because it lowers the financial barrier to obtaining the necessary instructions and diagnostic software required to fix farm machinery.
-
Legal Protection for Repair Work: Section 3(c) explicitly allows people to bypass digital locks and security measures specifically for the purpose of diagnosing, maintaining, upgrading, or repairing farm equipment. This protects individuals from copyright lawsuits when they are simply trying to fix the machinery they own.
Potential Negative Impacts for People
-
Trade Secret Exceptions: Section 6(1) specifies that manufacturers are not required to divulge trade secrets to an owner or independent service provider, except as necessary to provide access to repair materials on fair and reasonable terms. This could potentially create loopholes where manufacturers withhold certain proprietary information under the guise of protecting trade secrets, making complete repairs difficult for independent mechanics.
-
Prohibition on Safety and Emission Modifications: Section 6(5) blocks any modifications that permanently deactivate safety notification systems or change settings to bring equipment permanently out of compliance with safety or emissions laws. While this protects public safety and the environment, it means owners and independent providers have restricted freedom to alter or tune their own machinery beyond legal limits.
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Good For Farmers+9Good For Rural Residents+8Good For Business Owners+6Good For Low Income Households+2Good For Billionaires-2
- Economy And Finance
- Improves Small Business Support+7Improves Consumer Protection+6Improves Economic Growth+3Increases Job Creation+2
- Governance And Ideology
- Improves Interstate Commerce+4Improves Government Transparency+3Increases Federal Power+3
- Environment Energy And Infrastructure
- Improves Rural Development+6
- Education And Technology
- Improves Intellectual Property Fairness+2
- 10/28/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- 2 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
John FettermanDemocrat · Pennsylvania
Elizabeth WarrenDemocrat · Massachusetts