Today the House Committee on Agriculture, Forestry, and Economic Development passed HB 1852 unanimously after a hearing. The bill now heads to the House Floor where it is expected to come up for a vote before the week is out. The Speaker of the House has not indicated he will slow down the bill.
The bill sponsor, Rep. Moore, did reach out to me this morning prior to the hearing and we had a candid conversation about the bill. His position is the MOUs need to be codified because they have no enforcement mechanism and the bill was a copy/paste of the MOUs (false). He reiterated both of those points in his testimony during the hearing. When asked if there had been any complaints from constituent farmers or independent repairs shops about access and availability to tools, documentation, and diagnostics, he told me there were none. He did agree this issue is more attributable to the workforce shortage of technicians, but still intended to pass the bill.
Expected Senate Committee Hearing
We have received advanced notice from the Senate Agriculture Committee Chair that the bill will be scheduled for a hearing next Tuesday. The Senate Ag Chairman, Sen. Ronald Caldwell, has told stakeholders he wants to see dealers in-person testifying against the bill or he will be inclined to pass it out of committee next week.
Call to Action: We need as many dealers as possible lined up to testify against the bill next week. If you are able and willing to do so, please notify me as quickly as possible so I can help coordinate testimony.
Thank you to the dealers who sent emails and made calls prior to this hearing. Although you may have received a brief reply, they are making a difference. We need to continue pushing against the bill to prevent it from passing in the short window before session adjourns. Position Statement. Please contact me directly if you have any questions.
