California CORE Funding to Reopen on December 1. Vita Is Now Accepting Orders.
California’s CORE program has confirmed that it will be reopening its FY 2026-27 voucher window on December 1. With a voucher and the small-business enhancement, Vita’s 23.5ft all-electric RIB Seal lands at $63,750 and the 19.4ft SeaDog at $34,000 before tax. Vita is taking orders now.
California’s Clean Off-Road Equipment Voucher Incentive Project (CORE) will reopen for new voucher requests on December 1, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific and will accept them for three months, closing March 1, 2027. The window gives marine operators a fresh chance to cut the upfront cost of moving to zero-emission workboats, and Vita is now accepting orders, so that customers can be ready to apply the day funding opens in order to maximise benefitting from the scheme.
How CORE works
CORE is administered by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) with Catalyst Mobility and gives California businesses and public agencies a point-of-sale discount on commercially available zero-emission off-road equipment. Commercial harbor craft is one of nine funded categories. According to CORE’s notice to approved dealers, CARB has allocated $68 million in Air Quality Improvement Program funding to this cycle which, combined with rollover from unredeemed vouchers in earlier cycles, brings total available funding to $140 million. Under the FY 2026-27 Implementation Manual, harbor craft vouchers are capped at $1,000,000 per vessel including enhancements, and there is no scrappage requirement. Small businesses qualify for an additional enhancement of 15% of the base voucher.
Vouchers are issued on a first-come first-served basis and CORE has been oversubscribed in every cycle since it opened in 2020. Two changes make early planning for application in this cycle important: large businesses are eligible again, and new propulsion systems have been added to Attachment E, the harbor craft rules. Orders placed before December 1 put operators in position to submit on day one of the new programme.
Already working California waterfronts
Vita’s all-electric RIBs are already working multiple California waterfronts, including Westpoint Harbor in Redwood City (which took the Bay Area’s first SeaDog), Berkeley Marina, which has been running a Seal for dock patrol, towing, debris removal and emergency response, and San Diego Yacht Club, which operates one of each for race management. Vita supplied 19 Seal and SeaDog boats as sole electric boat supplier to the 2024 Olympic Games sailing events in what was the largest ever fleet of electric workboats at a major event.
Those boats are supported from Sausalito, Vita’s North American service center on San Francisco Bay, handling commissioning, warranty work, parts and scheduled servicing for the US fleet. California operators may also sea trial a Seal or SeaDog there.
The 23.5-foot Seal carries a 126 kWh battery on a 400 V system, rated 125 hp continuous and 170 hp peak, with a 20-knot cruise and a 30-knot top speed. The 19.4-foot SeaDog runs the same drivetrain on a 63 kWh pack and seats eight, built for marina and harbor duty where instant torque gives strong towing and pushing force at low rpm. Both run near silent, with no fumes, no fuel spills and no tailpipe emissions.
What it means for buyers
The voucher changes the arithmetic of switching. For a buyer qualifying as a small business under CORE:
| Seal | SeaDog | |
|---|---|---|
| List price | $265,000 | $195,000 |
| CARB CORE base voucher | −$175,000 | −$140,000 |
| Small-business enhancement (15%) | −$26,250 | −$21,000 |
| Price before sales tax | $63,750 | $34,000 |
Buyers who do not qualify as a small business pay $90,000 for a Seal and $55,000 for a SeaDog on the base voucher alone. Separately, up to $100,000 in EVSE funding is available toward a fast DC charger. California sales tax is charged on the full vessel price rather than the discounted price, and the rate follows where the vessel is registered and used.
Funding is limited and available only while program funds last. Eligibility, voucher amounts and availability are determined by CARB under the CORE Implementation Manual; Vita makes no guarantee of funding. Operators should confirm current terms at californiacore.org.
See how the Vita Seal and SeaDog are advancing zero-emission marine operations: The Seal and The SeaDog.
To discuss availability and ordering, contact the Vita team.