Reviewed and updated October 4, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. Every office link on this page was opened and checked against the office's own website at review time.
Chico is a city in Butte County, California, with about 103,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Its public records are split between the city and the county. The city keeps police reports, council records and its own licenses and permits; court cases, jail bookings, deeds and vital records are county or state records. This guide names the Chico offices SearchSystems verified, links to each one's own website and gives the phone number and address where the office publishes them. SearchSystems verified 2 city office pages for Chico, every one opened and checked, and lists 1 more whose site blocks automated checks.
In this guide: City or county, City Clerk, Police records, City Hall, Records requests, Other cities and Questions.
City or county record: where Chico records are kept
- Kept by the City of Chico: police reports, council and board meeting records, ordinances and the city's own licenses and permits.
- Kept by Butte County or the state: court cases, jail bookings, deeds and property values and birth and death certificates. These are not city records; they are in the Butte County public records guide under court records, jail lookups, property records and vital records.
Chico City Clerk: council records and ordinances
The City Clerk keeps the official records of the city government: council and board agendas and minutes, ordinances and resolutions, and the city's contracts and other official documents. The office below is the one SearchSystems verified for Chico.
- Website: chicoca.gov/Departments/City-Clerks-Office-Valid (page title: City of Chico | City Clerk's Office)
- Phone: 530-896-7250
- Address: 411 Main Street 3rd Floor Chico, CA 95927
- Hours: Monday - Friday : 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
- Checked: September 25, 2026, the page answered.
Chico police reports and records
Incident reports, crash reports and the other records of the Chico police are requested from the department's records unit, usually in writing or through an online form. Reports on open investigations and the names of victims and juveniles are usually withheld or redacted, and some states limit crash reports to the people involved and their insurers. The page below is the one SearchSystems verified for Chico police records.
- Website: chicoca.gov/documents/City-Services/Public-Safety/Police-Department... (page title: CHICO POLICE DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR RECORDS)
- Phone: (530) 895-4911
- Address: 1460 Humboldt Rd Chico, CA 95928
- Checked: September 25, 2026, the page answered.
Jail bookings and inmate lookups are usually handled by the county, not the city police. They are in the Butte County public records guide under jail and inmate lookups.
Chico City Hall: departments, licenses and permits
Business licenses, building permits, code enforcement cases and the city's other records are kept by the department that issued them. The city's own website below lists its departments and how to reach them.
- Website: chico.ca.us/Connect-With-Us
- Checked: September 25, 2026, the site did not answer our automated check (HTTP 403); open it directly in a browser.
Public records requests to Chico
California public records law applies to the city government of Chico. A record that is not posted online is requested from the office that holds it: the City Clerk for council and city records, the police records unit for police reports and the department that issued a permit or license for its records. A request that names a date, an address, or a report or case number is the easiest to answer.
Other cities and towns in Butte County
SearchSystems has a guide like this one for these other cities and towns in Butte County. The Butte County public records guide covers the records the county keeps for all of them.
Chico Arrest Records
The Chico arrest records guide covers the agency that reports Chico's arrests to the FBI and the 2,459 arrests it reported for 2025. It also says where a person arrested in Chico is held, how to find out about an arrest and how to get a copy of the report.
Chico Records Guides
SearchSystems has nine more guides to Chico, each written from the city's own offices and figures: Chico warrants (who issues and serves them, where a person arrested on one is held, how to check for one), Chico inmate search (the custody page of the Butte County Sheriff's Office, the jail numbers and who books people), Chico criminal records (the court file, the California criminal history and the local arrest records), Chico court records (which court hears what, the case search and who keeps the files), Chico police reports (which agency holds a report and what the California Public Records Act requires), Chico traffic tickets (which court takes the ticket, who writes them and the driving record), Chico DUI (the DUI law, the arrest, the court case and the license case), Chico divorce records (which court holds the file and how a certified copy is had) and Chico property records (deeds, assessed values, permits and evictions).
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this the official Chico website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records directory, online since 1997. It links to the official Chico offices listed above; SearchSystems does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.
How do I get a police report in Chico?
Request it from the Chico police records unit at chicoca.gov, phone (530) 895-4911. Reports on open investigations and the names of victims and juveniles are usually withheld or redacted.
Where do I find Chico city council minutes and ordinances?
From the City Clerk at chicoca.gov, phone 530-896-7250. The office keeps the official agendas and minutes, ordinances and resolutions.
Where do I find court records or jail bookings for Chico?
Chico cases are heard by the courts that serve Butte County, and people arrested in Chico are usually booked into the county jail. Both are covered in the Butte County public records guide on SearchSystems.
How do I request a public record from Chico?
From the office that holds it: the City Clerk for council and city records, the police records unit for police reports and the department that issued a permit or license for its records. California public records law applies to city governments.