L.A. County to pay $5.1 million in Trump tariffs on new Firehawk Play

L.A. County is going to pay $5.1 million in import tariffs for a new firefighting helicopter. The extra taxes will be paid by county taxpayers due to Trump tariffs, the county has announced.

Earlier this week, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved buying a Sikorsky S-70i Firehawk. The airframe is built by Sikorsky at its factory in Poland, and then shipped to a factory in Colorado to be outfitted with expensive firefighting gear.

Water tanks, snorkels for refilling from the air, night flying capabilities — all of that is very expensive. But the biggest line item for the $43 million chopper purchase is the $5 million tax levied by the Trump administration on the airframe, which is built in the European Union.

The precise cost of the tariff is not yet determined. It depends how the helicopter invoice is computed, says the fire department.

Earlier this year, the county approved a separate $41 million lease for the Super Scooper water-dropping aircraft for another five years. That price includes the Canada Air pilots. But since it is a lease, it appears that Trump tariffs will not be slapped on L.A. county taxpayers for that one.