John Deere, Garmin, and Philips may have undermined military right to repair | The VergeSkip to main contentThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.The VergeThe Verge logo.TechReviewsScienceEntertainmentAIPolicyHamburger Navigation ButtonThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.Hamburger Navigation ButtonNavigation DrawerThe VergeThe Verge logo.Login / Sign UpcloseCloseSearchTechExpandAmazonAppleFacebookGoogleMicrosoftSamsungBusinessSee all techReviewsExpandSmart Home ReviewsPhone ReviewsTablet ReviewsHeadphone ReviewsSee all reviewsScienceExpandSpaceEnergyEnvironmentHealthSee all scienceEntertainmentExpandTV ShowsMoviesAudioSee all entertainmentAIExpandOpenAIAnthropicSee all AIPolicyExpandAntitrustPoliticsLawSecuritySee all policyGadgetsExpandLaptopsPhonesTVsHeadphonesSpeakersWearablesSee all gadgetsVerge ShoppingExpandBuying GuidesDealsGift GuidesSee all shoppingGamingExpandXboxPlayStationNintendoSee all gamingStreamingExpandDisneyHBONetflixYouTubeCreatorsSee all streamingTransportationExpandElectric CarsAutonomous CarsRide-sharingScootersSee all transportationFeaturesVerge VideoExpandTikTokYouTubeInstagramPodcastsExpandDecoderThe VergecastVersion HistoryNewslettersArchivesStoreVerge Product UpdatesSubscribeFacebookThreadsInstagramYoutubeRSSThe VergeThe Verge logo.John Deere, Garmin, and Philips may have undermined military right to repairComments DrawerCommentsLoading commentsGetting the conversation ready...PolicyClosePolicyPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PolicyNewsCloseNewsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All NewsTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechJohn Deere, Garmin, and Philips may have undermined military right to repairThese companies spent nearly $2 million on lobbying related to the annual defense policy bill, which included a right-to-repair provision.These companies spent nearly $2 million on lobbying related to the annual defense policy bill, which included a right-to-repair provision.by Emma RothCloseEmma RothNews WriterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Emma RothMar 24, 2026, 2:34 PM UTCLinkShareGiftNurPhoto via Getty ImagesEmma RothCloseEmma RothPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Emma Roth is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.Last year, Congress dropped widely supported military right-to-repair provisions from the annual defense policy bill — and now we may know who was pushing them to do it. Recently released lobbying reports reveal that companies like John Deere, Garmin, Philips, and many others have collectively spent millions of dollars on lobbying efforts related to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), in some cases specifically regarding repair issues.Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, in addition to leaders in the Army and Navy, signaled that they’re on board with military right to repair in the months leading up to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) vote last December. The NDAA included language from Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Tim Sheehy’s (R-MT) Warrior Right to Repair Act, which would provide all branches of the military with the information they need to repair and maintain their equipment.But lawmakers removed this provision and a contractor-backed alternative that would implement a “data-as-a-service” model for access to repair materials. And now, Lobbying Disclosure Act reports submitted to Congress show that military contractors like RTX, Rolls-Royce, and BAE Systems weren’t the only ones contributing funds toward issues related to right to repair and intellectual property.Between October 1st and December 31st, 2025, John Deere, a major opponent of the right-to-repair movement, spent more than $700,000 on lobbying efforts related to the NDAA and a trio of individual right-to-repair bills: the Freedom to Repair Act, Fair Repair Act, and the REPAIR Act. Meanwhile, Garmin paid a firm $60,000 to lobby on the NDAA and right to repair. Philips also spent more than $1 million on NDAA lobbying efforts in the second half of 2025, and specifically called out the “requirement for contractors to provide reasonable access to repair materials. The Verge reached out to John Deere, Garmin, and Philips with a request for comment but didn’t hear back by publication time.“This legislative fight isn’t over,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) says in a statement to The Verge. “I’ll keep pushing to root out the corrupting influence of money in politics and deliver right to repair for our military into law.”As it stands, it seems like the military right-to-repair movement is on hold. As pointed out by the Federal News Network, the version of the 2026 NDAA mandates the creation of a “digital system” to track, manage, and assess technical data and software for repairing or maintaining equipment. Greg Williams, the director of the Center for Defense Information at the Project on Government Oversight, told the Federal News Network that this provision doesn’t push the right-to-repair movement forward, as it “only addresses cases in which the contractors have failed to deliver or make available the data that is already in their contracts.”Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Emma RothCloseEmma RothNews WriterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Emma RothNewsCloseNewsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All NewsPolicyClosePolicyPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PolicyPoliticsClosePoliticsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PoliticsTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechMost PopularMost PopularNvidia CEO Jensen Huang says ‘I think we’ve achieved AGI’The US government just banned consumer routers made outside the USDonut Lab’s solid-state battery could barely hold a charge after getting damagedConfronting the CEO of the AI company that impersonated meVideoSome writing advice from Project Hail Mary’s Andy WeirThe Verge DailyA free daily digest of the news that matters most.Email (required)Sign UpBy submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. 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John Deere, Garmin, and Philips actively lobbied against military right-to-repair provisions during the 2025-2026 defense policy bill process, demonstrating a significant effort to influence legislation. According to lobbying disclosure reports submitted to Congress, these companies collectively invested nearly $2 million in lobbying activities related to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and several specific right-to-repair bills, including the Freedom to Repair Act, Fair Repair Act, and the REPAIR Act. Notably, John Deere spent over $700,000 on lobbying efforts, while Garmin invested $60,000 and Philips committed more than $1 million, emphasizing the importance they placed on addressing concerns related to contractor access to repair materials and intellectual property. The efforts centered around resisting the inclusion of provisions championed by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tim Sheehy, which aimed to grant all branches of the military the right to repair and maintain their equipment. The NDAA ultimately steered away from these proposals, adopting a new provision mandating a “digital system” for tracking and managing technical data, a measure that Greg Williams, Director of the Center for Defense Information, characterized as insufficient to advance the right-to-repair movement, arguing it primarily addresses contractor failures in data delivery rather than establishing a fundamental right. Despite these corporate efforts, Sen. Warren continues to advocate for the inclusion of right-to-repair measures in future legislation.