California Energy Commission rolls out second round of Transit Set-Aside Lane funding

The California Energy Commission’s Energy Infrastructure Incentives for Zero-Emission Commercial Vehicles (EnergIIZE) Project is launching its second round of Transit Set-Aside Lane funding, open now through Q1 2025. Administered by CALSTART and partner Tetra Tech, the Transit Set-Aside Lane will award up to $15 million in incentives for the deployment of zero-emission vehicle charging and hydrogen refueling infrastructure. It is intended to benefit California transit fleets, Tribes and others. 

Through the Transit Set-Aside, EnergIIZE covers up to $2.8 million in incentive funding for eligible equipment if applicants meet the equity criteria. Hydrogen equipment covered by EnergIIZE includes compressors, liquid and gaseous pumps, storage, piping and pipelines, dispensers with hose and nozzles and chillers. Electric vehicle (EV) equipment covered by EnergIIZE includes Level 2 electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE), direct current fast-chargers (DCFC), inductive charging systems, vehicle to grid (V2G) bidirectional EVSE, cable management systems and pantograph charging systems. Switchgears, electrical panel upgrades, wiring and conduit and meters are also possible. 

Transit vehicle incentives through the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Clean Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP) are paired with the CEC’s EnergIIZE transit infrastructure incentives. 

To qualify for Transit Set-Aside funds, fleets must meet one of the following criteria: 

• Included in the CARB Innovative Clean Transit (ICT) program’s list of compliant transit agencies 
• A California city or county government, transportation district/transit district, public agency district or public agency 
• A California Native American Tribe, California Tribal Organization or Non-Governmental Organization Serving Tribal entities 

Applications will be accepted through the Incentive Processing Center application portal. This Set-Aside Lane will operate in tandem with EnergIIZE’s Drayage Set-Aside Lane, which is offering up to $50 million in infrastructure incentives to hydrogen and EV drayage charging/fueling infrastructure and vehicle operators, vehicle dealers, Charging-as-a-Service (CaaS) vendors and others. 

“We are excited to reopen this opportunity for transit agencies and thank CARB for their ongoing support and collaboration,” said Tesi Bravo, deputy director, Commercial Clean Transportation Infrastructure, CALSTART. “We hope that California transit fleets continue to find value in this program and help spread the word about EnergIIZE funding opportunities.”