181,724 people (2024 Census estimate, +1.1% since 2020)
4,176 square miles of land · 44 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
29 active community water systems list Imperial County in the area they serve, reporting 172,159 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| EL CENTRO, CITY OF buys surface water · local government · CA1310004 | 44,124 served |
| CALEXICO, CITY OF buys surface water · local government · CA1310002 | 40,357 served |
| BRAWLEY, CITY OF buys surface water · local government · CA1310001 | 26,862 served |
| IMPERIAL, CITY OF buys surface water · local government · CA1310006 | 22,102 served |
| GSWC - CALIPATRIA buys surface water · private · CA1310003 | 7,475 served |
| HEBER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT buys surface water · private · CA1310007 | 7,312 served |
| HOLTVILLE, CITY OF buys surface water · local government · CA1310005 | 6,355 served |
| CALIPATRIA STATE PRISON buys surface water · state · CA1310800 | 4,800 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 379 people were held in Imperial County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2025). In 2020 it was about 252.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
17 school districts have their office in Imperial County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $195.4 million — $170.9 million to run schools, about $20,464 per student, plus $18.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $24.5 million local (mostly property tax), $165 million state, $37 million federal. Long-term debt: $117.9 million.
Spent $108.4 million — $94.1 million to run schools, about $17,901 per student, plus $12.7 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $11.5 million local (mostly property tax), $101.8 million state, $17 million federal. Long-term debt: $16.6 million.
Spent $81.1 million — $66.5 million to run schools, about $14,654 per student, plus $11.9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $16.5 million local (mostly property tax), $66.7 million state, $5.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $50.6 million.
Spent $88.2 million — $77.9 million to run schools, about $19,038 per student, plus $6.7 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $13.4 million local (mostly property tax), $100.5 million state, $9.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $30.5 million.
Spent $98 million — $67.1 million to run schools, about $17,335 per student, plus $29.7 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8.1 million local (mostly property tax), $84.8 million state, $13.8 million federal. Long-term debt: $14.6 million.
Spent $43.8 million — $39.5 million to run schools, about $19,218 per student, plus $3.2 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8.5 million local (mostly property tax), $33.6 million state, $4.8 million federal. Long-term debt: $15 million.
Spent $34.9 million — $29.4 million to run schools, about $18,698 per student, plus $4.3 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $7 million local (mostly property tax), $26.4 million state, $4.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $20.1 million.
Spent $19.4 million — $18.1 million to run schools, about $14,989 per student, plus $974,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $3.6 million local (mostly property tax), $17.4 million state, $2.6 million federal. Long-term debt: $6.3 million.
And 9 more.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively High compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Imperial County about $147.6 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Very Low; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
445 bridges in Imperial County: 243 in good condition, 167 fair, and 35 poor (7.9%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| FORRESTER RD (S30) over WESTSIDE MAIN CANAL · built 1950 | 11,714 vehicles a day |
| STATE ROUTE 86 NB over BILOXI DITCH · built 1981 | 7,300 vehicles a day |
| STATE ROUTE 86 NB over IBERIA DITCH · built 1981 | 7,300 vehicles a day |
| STATE ROUTE 86 SB over AMEROSA DITCH · built 1989 | 7,300 vehicles a day |
| STATE ROUTE 86 NB over AMEROSA DITCH · built 1981 | 7,300 vehicles a day |
| STATE ROUTE 86 SB over VERDE DITCH · built 1989 | 7,300 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $79.6 million of work in Imperial County in fiscal 2025, about $443 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Ballots mailed; drop boxes open: 2026-10-05. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-19. Early in-person voting: 2026-10-24 to 2026-11-03. Election Day: 2026-11-03. Last day for mailed ballots to arrive: 2026-11-10.
Source: California Secretary of State — Nov. 3, 2026 key dates · California Official Voter Information Guide — dates to remember · California Secretary of State — make a plan to vote
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Imperial County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Imperial County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of California: the state government and every county in California.
Nearby counties: Riverside County (60 mi) · San Diego County (82 mi) · Yuma County, AZ (86 mi) · La Paz County, AZ (90 mi) · San Bernardino County (134 mi) · Orange County (147 mi).