AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 3 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE AGRICULTURAL EQUIPMENT RIGHT TO REPAIR ACT.
HB176 creates the Delaware Agricultural Equipment Right to Repair Act, a new chapter in Title 3 aimed at expanding repair access for owners and independent repair providers of agricultural equipment. The bill requires original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to make available, on fair and reasonable terms, the documentation, parts, tools, and updates needed to diagnose, maintain, and repair covered equipment. It also bars OEMs from using parts pairing or similar software mechanisms to block replacement parts, reduce functionality after repair, generate misleading warnings, or otherwise restrict repair access.
The bill defines key terms broadly, including agricultural equipment, independent repair provider, owner, parts, tools, embedded software, and fair and reasonable terms. It includes provisions for electronic lock access during repair, while preserving limits for trade secrets, anti-theft protections, unavailable parts, and materials that would be illegal under state or federal law. The act would apply only to equipment first manufactured and sold on or after the effective date, and it would take effect six months after enactment.
HB176 would add a new statutory right-to-repair framework to Delaware law for agricultural equipment, placing affirmative disclosure and access obligations on OEMs and their authorized repair networks. It would also authorize the Attorney General to enforce violations under Delaware’s unfair competition, false advertising, and deceptive trade practices laws, giving the state existing enforcement tools and penalties. The bill would affect manufacturers, dealers, owners, and independent repair businesses by requiring broader access to repair information and limiting software-based repair restrictions.
The bill appears to have a generally pro-repair, pro-competition purpose, with bipartisan sponsorship suggesting broad legislative support for agricultural equipment owners and repair access. The synopsis and text frame the measure as promoting owner choice and competition in repair and maintenance services. No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no additional evidence of opposition or amendment debate in the available record.
The main points of potential contention are the scope of OEM obligations and the balance between repair access and manufacturer protections. Manufacturers may be concerned about the requirement to provide documentation, parts, tools, and software-related access on fair and reasonable terms, especially where parts pairing, electronic locks, or embedded software are involved. The bill attempts to limit those concerns by preserving trade secrets, anti-theft security measures, unavailable parts, and legal restrictions, while also stating that authorized repair arrangements and warranty/recall work are not otherwise altered.