Law to prevent machinery lockouts stalled in Senate

Canadian short-line agriculture equipment manufacturers raised the alarm recently when manufacturers of major brands locked the onboard digital systems on selected machines.

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The move effectively prevents short-line manufacturers from connecting their attachments to those machines, which locks them out of the market. It has particularly affected Canadian short-line manufacturers who build combine and swather headers.

Why it matters: The question of who has the right to repair has been hotly debated in North America.

A lobbying effort by short-line manufacturers and others in the industry grabbed the attention of politicians last year and led to introduction of Bill C-294, a private member’s bill that received rare unanimous approval in the House of Commons.

The bill is an amendment to the Copyright Act, a legal starting point to prohibit major brands from denying short-line companies the necessary codes to synchronize their equipment to a major brand machine’s digital system.

Bill C-294 moved to the Senate June 15, 2023, and has been given first reading there. However, it still has a long way to go before becoming law.

“The bill needs to be debated and adopted at second reading, studied in committee, then debated and adopted at third reading before it can receive royal assent and become law,” said the Senate’s Communications, Broadcasting and Publications Directorate in response to questions about the delay.

“If the Senate makes any changes to the bill, it would then have to go back to the House for another vote.”

As of early April, the bill’s second reading status on the Senate’s LEGISinfo web page shows “no activity,” meaning it has stalled for the moment.

In its spring budget, the federal government further addressed the interoperability issue, saying aside from amending the Copyright Act, which Bill C-294 will do, it will be “amending the Competition Act, as announced in the 2023 Fall Economic Statement, to prevent manufacturers from refusing, in an anti-competitive manner, to provide the parts, tools or software needed to fix devices and products.

“The government will launch consultations this June to develop a right to repair framework, which will focus on durability, repairability and interoperability.”

When asked for details about the consultation process, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister François-Phillipe Champagne’s office responded to written questions this way:

“The Government of Canada is committed to amending the Copyright Act and the Competition Act to remove barriers to repairing products and encourage manufacturers to better meet consumers’ needs.

“Facilitating repair and interoperability is a multi-faceted public policy challenge that might require a variety of measures, including at the provincial and territorial level. The government will do its part to remove obstacles and to ensure manufacturers better meet the needs of consumers.”

Before provinces can address legal changes within their jurisdictions, Bill C-294 must become law to allow for Copyright Act changes.

“The word has already gotten out to the provinces,” says Carlo Dade, director of the Canada West Foundation’s Trade and Trade Infrastructure Centre, who is critical of the delay in passing the bill.

“They (provinces) will respond when the feds change the law. Reminding them is unnecessary.”
Dade also said further consultations are unnecessary.

As well, a bill to amend the Copyright Act in relation to right to repair, Bill C-244, is already moving through the Senate. Despite its later arrival, it is already undergoing second reading.

“Whether more work is needed was a question asked and answered in the House,” Dade said. “If the government had worries or concerns, that was the time and place to address it.”

The minister’s office did not provide specifics on the upcoming consultation effort, saying only, “further details on the right to repair framework consultation will be announced in the coming months. As part of the consultation, the government will certainly explore if there is a need for further federal legislative changes to support right to repair.”

Dade remains skeptical.

“Why is the government reinventing the wheel? The changes are in the bill in the Senate. How much will this (consultation process) cost, and what does it do that hasn’t already been done by stakeholders and by the House committee?”