Butte County, CA Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)

An 'outdoor festival' is any outdoor gathering of one hundred or more people lasting three hours or longer to attend a musical, theatrical or similar event; events at parks or fairgrounds with permanent facilities, activities already covered by an existing use permit, and school, recreation-district or county memorial-hall functions are excluded (Sec. 1(B)). Every qualifying event needs an Outdoor Festival Administrative Permit from the Department of Development Services; the permit is a ministerial approval categorically exempt from CEQA review under section 15268(a), but the application must include the organizer's contact information, proof of ownership or written consent for the site, the festival dates and hours, an attendance estimate, a full event-management plan covering security, water, food, sanitation, medical services, parking, traffic control and public-address use, and a hazard-management plan focused on alcohol, drugs, open fires, fireworks and firearms (Sec.

1(E)). Tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizers skip the application fee outright, and an established site with a history of prior festival permits can claim the same fee exemption up to five times a year (Sec. 1(D)). on weekends, on-site security must hold a State Bureau of Security and Investigative Services guard registration, and food vendors need Environmental Health community-event and vendor permits applied for at least two weeks before the event, with portable toilets provided at two per the first hundred attendees and one more per additional hundred (Sec.

1(F)). Organizers must also arrange dust control under county Air Quality Management District Rules 200 and 205, coordinate with the Sheriff and state ABC for any alcohol service, carry the county's required insurance, and indemnify Butte County against claims arising from the event; a lapse in coverage can trigger immediate revocation of the permit.