San Diego County filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against a handful of companies it alleges took over the market for fire trucks, leading to higher prices and slower rollouts of trucks to replace the county’s aging fleet.
The county’s complaint alleges the defendants acquired a number of smaller fire truck manufacturers and have essentially eliminated competition for the vehicles and their parts.
County leaders say this has led to trucks costing more than double what they used to and taking around one to four years to be delivered.
The suit comes a year after the county Board of Supervisors agreed to look into legal or advocacy actions targeting corporations behind most of the fire truck manufacturing industry. At that time, a county spokesperson said the county spent about $526,000 in 2016 for a Type-1 fire engine, the sort normally seen in urban and suburban settings. In 2024, the price tag was $1.25 million.
Among the companies named as defendants is private equity firm American Industrial Partners, which allegedly consolidated multiple manufacturers into a single entity known as REV Group. Another manufacturer, Oshkosh Corporation, has allegedly taken steps to ensure its subsidiary, Pierce Manufacturing, controls the market for chassis and replacement parts, allowing the company to charge high prices for its proprietary parts.
“Firefighters don’t have a choice — when a truck breaks down, they need a new one. For years, fire departments have been paying more and waiting longer,” county Board of Supervisors Chair Terra Lawson-Remer said in a statement.
“San Diego County is going after a handful of greedy companies that turned fire trucks into profit cash cows while our communities were left waiting and vulnerable to fire risk. We’re taking those companies to court to stop the greed that’s endangering lives and get our money back.”
A spokesperson for American Industrial Partners said Thursday: “AIP disagrees with the allegations in the complaint and intends to defend itself vigorously.”
Similarly, a spokesperson for REV Group said Thursday that the lawsuit was meritless and that the company intended to fight the allegations in court.
REV President Mike Virnig told Congress last year that the industry is “complex and highly competitive,” adding that all of REV’s manufacturing operations are in the U.S., and that the majority of its parts and components are sourced from U.S.-based suppliers.
“There are a number of reasons why fire truck delivery times can be extended, including supply chain constraints, labor challenges, customer change orders, manufacturing issues, and unprecedented increases in orders driven by sudden increases in municipal budgets resulting from federal stimulus funds. Many of these issues were exacerbated during and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Virnig testified.
He said the company has worked to meet increased demand and reduce the backlog, with production output increased by about 40% over the last three years. The average delivery time, while variable, is now about two years, he added.
A spokesperson for Oshkosh said Thursday: “The allegations in this lawsuit are without merit, and we are defending ourselves in court. Oshkosh remains focused on delivering safe, high-quality fire trucks while continuing to reinvest in our U.S. operations to meet record demand.”
According to the county, its fire department serves 42 communities and operates around 75 trucks, some of which are “well past their recommended service life.”
Cal Fire San Diego Unit Chief Tony Mecham said it’s “critical for our firefighters to be prepared and have the equipment needed to protect residents and quickly contain wildfires. We’ve seen the devastation wildfires can cause in our communities. Increased costs and long wait times for equipment should not impact our ability to keep people safe.”
Staff writer Teri Figueroa contributed to this report.