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Being an Illinois farmer is tough right now. Bankruptcies among farms in our state surged 55% in 2025 alone, while a series of damaging hailstorms has put a damper on what promised to be a strong crop season.
That’s why it was so good to hear recently that we won a major victory at the federal level. Illinois farmers now have the right to repair their own tractors, combines and spreaders. The decision could save residents in our state millions.
Every farmer is familiar with the emission controls that by law are installed on their equipment. If a tractor suffers, say, a diesel exhaust fluid failure, it triggers a shutdown — and once that happens, the vehicle can be difficult to get working again.
Many believed that the Clean Air Act made it illegal for farmers to fix their own equipment once one of these shutdowns was triggered. This forced them to bring the busted machine to a dealer to fix the problem.
Of course, sometimes this is what’s needed. Some repairs are too complicated or potentially unsafe to be handled by anyone other than a professional.
But there are also plenty of simple fixes that equipment owners can make themselves. Fear of fines and lawsuits from regulators was forcing farmers to spend money they didn’t need to and even delay planting season as they waited for a dealer to have availability.
Truly this was big government run amok. That’s why we should all cheer the right to repair.
Earlier this year, after Deere & Co. requested the agency provide this win to farmers, the Environmental Protection Agency ruled that nothing in the Clean Air Act stripped farmers of their fundamental right to repair the equipment they’ve bought.
Then, this month, Illinois, the Federal Trade Commission and four other states came to an agreement. Deere will “provide farmers and independent repair providers with the same equipment repair resources, including applicable software capabilities, that it currently provides to authorized Deere dealers,” the FTC reported.
The right to repair won’t fix everything, but it will ease those struggles and make our livelihoods as farmers just a little more manageable.
Illinois and federal regulators should now build on this momentum. They should press other equipment manufacturers to do as Deere did and grant their customers repair rights. If the industry’s biggest player is able and willing to help, other companies should be too.
— State Rep. Chris Miller, R-Oakland
I am writing to express my concern about the increasing number of solar farms being developed across the state of Illinois. The energy generated by solar farms does not begin to justify the destruction of thousands of acres of valuable farmland.
Across the country and across Illinois, farmland is disappearing at an alarming rate. For example, a 6,000-acre solar farm was recently approved near Manhattan.
The day is coming when our dwindling farmland will not be able to grow enough food to feed our country or export our surplus to other nations.
I’m not against solar energy, but solar energy has not yet advanced to the point that solar farms are economically feasible without government subsidies. When a large corporation buys thousands of acres of productive farmland so that they can enrich themselves off of government subsidies, that is simply wrong.
Solar panels are known to last 25 to 30 years. As recycling solar panels is currently not practical, used solar panels will likely end up in landfills, creating environmental concerns.
Solar farms are also a visual blight on the rural countryside.
I believe that the most egregious action taken in the furtherance of the propagation of solar farms across Illinois was the energy omnibus bill passed in 2025 by the Illinois General Assembly. This bill prohibits local jurisdictions from establishing requirements for commercial solar energy facilities that are more restrictive than the state law.
I’m not suggesting solar farms be banned from the state of Illinois. My belief is that local municipalities and counties should have the right to make determinations about these projects. The current law is state government overreach.
The citizens of Illinois must demand that their state representatives give the power to regulate solar farms back to local counties and municipalities.
— Mark Turvey, Bolingbrook
Red Illinois counties complaining about high taxes? Do the residents there realize their counties are subsidized by Cook County and the collar counties? Do they honestly think Indiana will raise taxes statewide to subsidize them?
And the secession question was decided over a century ago. It’s a no-go.
I was raised on a farm downstate but have lived in Chicago and the suburbs since graduating from college. Less nostalgia for the past and more planning for the future are needed.
— Marilyn Smith, Arlington Heights
Reading the July 17 letters supporting the secessionist move of downstate Illinois counties, I find one writer who gets his information from the right-wing Illinois Policy Institute, and another comes from someone living in Florida!
For those who are upset by the supposed dominance of Chicago in Illinois politics, I would suggest that the best solution can be found in elections. Find and elect state representatives and state senators who are sympathetic to your complaints. This is the best way to be heard.
This comes from a proud lifelong Illinoisan.
— Paul Breit, Tinley Park
I am always amazed at the commonsense proposals suggested by Willie Wilson on the Opinion page (“Billions of dollars in spending has not saved Black Chicago from the scourge of gun violence,” July 16). It would serve our elected politicians well to listen and follow some of his recommendations to curb gun violence in Chicago.
— Jean Bonavolonta, Roselle
What does freedom mean to a young person who has no realistic hope of using that freedom to build a better life?
Freedom without opportunity can become an empty promise. Opportunity without freedom can become government dependence. A wise society must strive to preserve both.
The purpose of Chicago’s new Office of Gun Violence Reduction should therefore be more than simply attempting to reduce the number of shootings. Its greater purpose should be to help create the conditions in which fewer young people believe that violence is their only path to money, status, protection or survival.
Perhaps Chicago’s greatest challenge is not simply to ask: How do we stop the shooting? But also: How do we give people a realistic reason to choose a different life?
— Rudy U. Martinka, Elmhurst
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Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.
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