Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you witnesses for appearing on this important bill. Thanks to Mr. Lawford in particular for coming in person. We appreciate that.
Perhaps I could start with Mr. Boxall.
We've heard testimony here at this committee from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers and a couple of other representatives from that industry that about a third of the farm equipment that comes in for repair to dealerships and repair shops has had alterations done to it. The owner, or somebody before the owner, has already gone out and altered it. That's because the repair manuals, the codes and all of that equipment is available for farm equipment, as I understand it. It's a modest price for buying a diagnostic tool.
The two primary things that this has been used for are to up the horsepower of the motor, which puts it out of sync with the transmission and causes issues, and the removal of the emission control devices. That causes it to use less fuel, but obviously without any emissions controls, that causes other impacts on the environment.
While this bill is well-intended, some industries, like the farm equipment industry, actually show what may happen if there aren't restrictions on alterations.
Could you comment, first of all, on the alterations that happen currently?