922,529 people (2024 Census estimate, +1.8% since 2020)
8,135 square miles of land · 113 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.
167 active community water systems list Kern County in the area they serve, reporting 1,006,629 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| CWS - BAKERSFIELD surface water · private · CA1510003 | 268,129 served |
| BAKERSFIELD, CITY OF buys surface water · local government · CA1510031 | 171,108 served |
| DELANO, CITY OF groundwater · local government · CA1510005 | 51,428 served |
| OILDALE MWC buys surface water · private · CA1510015 | 45,315 served |
| INDIAN WELLS VALLEY W.D. groundwater · local government · CA1510017 | 41,474 served |
| TEJON CASTAC WD - I5 & LAVAL RD surface water · local government · CA1503341 | 38,125 served |
| ANTELOPE VALLEY E KERN WTR AGY-ROSAMOND surface water · private · CA1510053 | 37,634 served |
| VAUGHN WC INC groundwater · private · CA1510029 | 37,189 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 1,794 people were held in Kern County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2025). In 2020 it was about 1,765.
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.
47 school districts have their office in Kern County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $869 million — $748.2 million to run schools, about $17,392 per student, plus $92.3 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $234.2 million local (mostly property tax), $668.5 million state, $99.7 million federal. Long-term debt: $348.8 million.
Spent $598.2 million — $552.3 million to run schools, about $19,155 per student, plus $34.9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $49.9 million local (mostly property tax), $605 million state, $107.3 million federal. Long-term debt: $111.9 million.
Spent $324.2 million — $298.8 million to run schools, about $15,641 per student, plus $17.2 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $34.6 million local (mostly property tax), $319.6 million state, $26.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $119.5 million.
Spent $211.8 million — $154.1 million to run schools, about $16,792 per student, plus $47 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $23.6 million local (mostly property tax), $179 million state, $29.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $32.5 million.
Spent $151 million — $132.2 million to run schools, about $21,264 per student, plus $12.9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $17.5 million local (mostly property tax), $135.8 million state, $28.5 million federal. Long-term debt: $38.1 million.
Spent $86.6 million — $81.8 million to run schools, about $13,538 per student, plus $625,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $28.2 million local (mostly property tax), $68.9 million state, $7.7 million federal.
Spent $99.2 million — $77.2 million to run schools, about $15,165 per student, plus $21.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $15 million local (mostly property tax), $76.6 million state, $30 million federal. Long-term debt: $23 million.
Spent $64.2 million — $62.1 million to run schools, about $14,888 per student, plus $712,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $20.3 million local (mostly property tax), $45.3 million state, $9.5 million federal. Long-term debt: $6.6 million.
And 39 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 Kern County about $417 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Very Low; social vulnerability: Relatively High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
668 bridges in Kern County: 332 in good condition, 299 fair, and 37 poor (5.5%). “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.
| STATE ROUTE 99 over HIGH ST & UP RR · built 1955 | 53,000 vehicles a day |
| PANAMA LANE over STATE ROUTE 99 · built 1962 | 44,034 vehicles a day |
| WIBLE ROAD over STATE ROUTE 99 · built 1962 | 40,000 vehicles a day |
| WILSON ROAD over STATE ROUTE 99 · built 1962 | 40,000 vehicles a day |
| GOSFORD RD NB over KERN RIVER CANAL · built 1981 | 18,900 vehicles a day |
| GOSFORD RD SB over ARVIN-EDISON CANAL · built 1984 | 17,700 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $952.2 million of work in Kern County in fiscal 2025, about $1,047 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 Kern 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 Kern County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of California: the state government and every county in California.
Nearby counties: Tulare County (61 mi) · Ventura County (72 mi) · Kings County (79 mi) · Los Angeles County (84 mi) · Santa Barbara County (92 mi) · San Luis Obispo County (97 mi).