[9] Butte County comprises the Chico, California, metropolitan statistical area.

[11] Between November 8 and 25, 2018, a major wildfire, the Camp Fire, destroyed most of the town of Paradise, the adjacent community of Concow, and a large area of rural, hilly country east of Chico.

About a half dozen of these plants are located in the county, one of which, serves the Oroville Dam.

For example, in recent years, the agency changed rules that once allowed residents to burn household trash outdoors.

The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.

The Berry Creek Rancheria of Tyme Maidu Indians of California is headquartered in Oroville.

[39] According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 10, 2019, Butte County has 172,054 registered voters.

[40] On November 4, 2008, Butte County voted 56.7% for Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.

[41] Butte County is in California's 1st congressional district, represented by Republican Doug LaMalfa.

[42] Butte is a bellwether county in presidential elections, and one of only thirteen to have voted for Barack Obama in 2008, Mitt Romney in 2012, Donald Trump in 2016, and Joe Biden in 2020.

[a] There are roughly 90 public schools in the county according to the National Center for Educational Statistics.

The mission of the Butte County Library is to provide all individuals, regardless of age, ethnic background, educational or economic level, with free access to ideas, information, and technology.

The library serves low-literacy adults through several programs of the Butte County Library Literacy Services division, including the Adult Reading Program, Families for Literacy and the Literacy Coach, a 36-foot (11 m) vehicle that provides mobile programming like story times, parent meetings, workshops, and computer and teacher trainings.

Butte Regional Transit or the B-Line, provides service in and between Chico, Oroville, Paradise, Gridley and Biggs.

[46] † county seat Several movies have been filmed in Butte County, including Gone with the Wind,[48] The Outlaw Josey Wales,[49] Friendly Persuasion,[50] Magic Town,[51] The Klansman,[50] Ruby Ridge: An American Tragedy,[50] The Adventures of Robin Hood,[50] and Under Wraps.