Butte County, CA Cannabis Regulations: Dispensary Zoning (2026)

Section 24-166 of the Zoning Ordinance is a single-sentence prohibition sitting among the "Supplemental Use Regulations" alongside Section 24-165 (Kennels) and Section 24-167 (Mobile Home Parks): "Marijuana dispensaries shall be a prohibited use within Butte County." Because the Use Regulation Tables in Article II only assign zoning designations to uses that are allowed somewhere in the county, "Marijuana Dispensary" does not appear as a "P," "A," "C," or "M" entry in any of the AG, residential, commercial, industrial, or special purpose use tables; the prohibition in Section 24-166 removes it from the permitting system entirely rather than routing it through a particular zone.

The glossary confirms the scope of the ban. Section 24-304 defines "Marijuana Dispensary" as "a facility or location where marijuana is made available to a qualified patient," and appends the parenthetical note "(Note: This is a prohibited use in Butte County)" directly to that definition, so there is no ambiguity about whether a caregiver, collective, or state-licensed retailer model changes the outcome. The ordinance draws a distinction elsewhere in the code between dispensing marijuana and cultivating it: Chapter 34A, the Butte County Medical Cannabis Ordinance, separately regulates cultivation under its own permit and setback standards, and the Community Garden definition in Section 24-304 separately states that "the cultivation of marijuana is not a permitted use in a community garden." But the retail dispensary prohibition in Section 24-166 stands on its own and applies countywide, with no CUP, variance, or overlay zone that can override it.