California opens Innovative Small e-Fleet program funding

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has announced the opening of the Innovative Small E-Fleet (ISEF) set-aside, available through the California HVIP, a program that provides vouchers to reduce the cost of hybrid and electric trucks and buses. ISEF provides incentives specifically for small fleets that seek to deploy battery-electric or hydrogen fuel cell trucks.

Source: California Air Resources Board

The ISEF set-aside opens effective August 30, 2023, at 1 p.m. Pacific Time. Eligible participants must be privately owned or non-profit trucking companies in California with 20 or fewer trucks and less than $15 million per year in annual revenue; owner operators also qualify. Non-profits are exempt from the revenue cap, CARB noted.

CARB recently announced that the $33 million funding allocation for ISEF would be reserved exclusively for innovative solutions such as short-term leases, rentals and truck-as-a-service, with an additional $50 million now allotted for ISEF purchases. All transactions must be made through HVIP-approved providers.

Small fleets seeking to purchase should contact a dealer from the HVIP catalog. Eligible participants looking for an innovative solution should visit the Provider Directory at www.californiahvip.org/isef. Fleets are encouraged to verify their recorded fleet size using Safer, and their compliance and eligibility using the TRUCRs system, to ensure eligibility prior to participation, CARB stated.

All HVIP-approved dealers will be able to access the ISEF application within the Voucher Processing Center once ISEF is open. Voucher requests will be accepted until funding has been exhausted. Updates on funding availability will be posted on HVIP’s funding page.

California fleets can contact an HVIP-approved dealer or provider to participate in ISEF. Guidelines to participate in ISEF are now available through Appendix F of HVIP’s Fiscal Year 2022-23 Implementation Manual.