California's forklift phase-out clock starts in the warehouse capital of the state
The California Air Resources Board adopted its Zero-Emission Forklift Regulation in June 2024, at a hearing held in Riverside. The rule restricts the sale of most large spark-ignited forklifts — the Class IV and Class V propane, gasoline, and natural-gas machines rated at 12,000 pounds or less — starting in 2026, and phases existing ones out of fleets between 2028 and 2038. Diesel forklifts and pallet jacks are exempt. Statewide, the rule reaches more than 89,000 forklifts.
Where those machines sit is the part that matters here. Colliers puts the Inland Empire at 647 million square feet of industrial space — roughly 37% of all industrial property over 10,000 square feet across Southern California. No other metro in the state carries a warehouse base on that scale, which means no other metro carries as many of the forklifts the rule is written to retire. A statewide mandate lands as a regional one.
For the operator, the equipment swap is the simple part. Electric models already lead the national market — about two-thirds of new forklifts sold are electric — and the cost case for indoor fleets is settled. The harder part sits behind the charger. Forklift chargers generally need 480-volt, three-phase service, and depending on fleet size, a facility may have to upgrade its electrical infrastructure to run them. That's a building-systems project and a utility conversation, not a purchase order.
The timing tightens the squeeze. Large fleets — 26 units or more — had to file an initial inventory with the state by April 30, 2026; smaller fleets have until September 30. The regulation also requires operators to open an electrical-demand conversation with their utility by late April. Meanwhile, the program that would help pay for the wiring is closing: Southern California Edison's Charge Ready Transport, which installs fleet-charging infrastructure at low or no cost and covers forklifts, takes applications only through June 30, 2026, with signed agreements due by year-end. SCE's commercial EV rates also waive demand charges for a five-year window that is already phasing out.
The rule carries exemptions — low-use forklifts under 200 hours a year, a single-unit allowance for microbusinesses, rentals for seasonal spikes, and extensions for documented infrastructure or supply delays. The phase-out is staggered by model year so that nothing has to be retired before it is ten years old. None of that changes the signal for an IE operator running a propane fleet: the purchase ban is live, the first reports are due now, and the cheapest path through the infrastructure cost has a 2026 expiration date.