The City of Fullerton has formally submitted a complaint to the California Attorney General’s Office, raising serious concerns about possible anti-competitive practices in the fire apparatus manufacturing industry. The complaint centers on escalating prices, extended delivery timelines, and restrictive contract terms.

The City has experienced unprecedented price increases of up to 75% for pumper engines over the past decade and over 40% for aerial trucks in just the past few years. Additionally, delivery timelines now exceed four years, forcing the City to rely on aging vehicles well beyond national safety standards.

“The alarming rising cost of fire apparatus in the past handful of years, primarily because of industry consolidation, has harmfully impacted fire departments,” said Mayor Fred Jung. “These aggressive pricing strategies force municipalities to seek answers. The City of Fullerton sees this as the first step to address these concerns and we look forward to leading this effort.”

The complaint also highlights new contract terms that allow manufacturers to impose mid-production price increases. These terms, combined with delivery timelines now exceeding four years severely disrupt municipal planning and force cities like Fullerton to keep aging fire trucks in frontline service well beyond national safety standards.

The City believes these issues are exacerbated by a highly consolidated market, where a small number of manufacturers control up to 80% of the U.S. market. Exclusive regional dealership models further restrict competition, leaving municipalities with few, if any, viable alternatives.

“Fire apparatus can be one of the most expensive pieces of equipment a City has to purchase and with the drastically escalating prices and elongated build times, it’s my responsibility as the Fire Chief to ask questions,” said Fire Chief Adam Loeser. “This isn’t just a Fullerton issue, but an issue that effects every fire department across the country as we all strive to maintain critical infrastructure required to protect our communities without saddling them with unnecessary costs.”