The Latest Breaking News from John Deere

The average Tesla-driving, iPhone-using suburbanite isn’t spending a lot of time worrying about tractor software payloads. They should, though.

"Is it perfect? No, but I think it's where we need to go."

As tractors became more sophisticated over the past two decades, the big manufacturers allowed farmers fewer options for repairs. Rather than hiring independent repair shops, farmers have increasingly had to wait for company-authorized dealers to arrive. Getting repairs could take days, often leading to lost time and high costs.

Lawmakers in Colorado and 10 other states have introduce bills that would force farming equipment manufacturers to provide the tools, software, parts and manuals needed for farmers to do their own repairs