Plumas County, CA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Family daycare homes in unincorporated Plumas County are controlled largely by California state law, which preempts local zoning. Health and Safety Code Sections 1597.40 through 1597.46, as amended by SB 234 (2019), provide that the use of a home as a small or large family daycare home is a residential use of property and a use by right for the purposes of all local ordinances, including zoning. Cities and counties may not require a business license, zoning clearance, or special or conditional use permit for these homes, and may not treat them differently from other residences in the same zone. The Plumas County zoning code is consistent with this: in the Single-Family Residential Zones, Sec. 9-2.1302(a) permits 'child day care homes' and 'limited child day care homes' by right, and the code defines a 'child day care home, limited' as care for six or fewer children (Sec. 9-2.223) and a 'child day care facility' as nonmedical day care for under 24 hours (Sec. 9-2.221). Where the older county code lists larger 'child day care facilities' as needing a special use permit (Sec. 9-2.1302(b)), that requirement is superseded by state law for licensed small and large family daycare homes, which are now use-by-right. Providers are licensed by the California Department of Social Services and must meet state building and fire standards; large homes may need a fire-safety clearance limited to State Fire Marshal standards. Standard residential setback, height, and lot rules still apply equally.