San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, and is located within the
Inland Empire
The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the citie ...
area. As of the
2020 U.S. Census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...
, the population was 2,181,654, making it the fifth-most populous county in California and the 14th-most populous in the United States. The
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...
Greater Los Angeles
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Co ...
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
metropolitan statistical area
In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...
, as well as the
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
–
Long Beach
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporat ...
combined statistical area
Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and ...
.
With an area of , San Bernardino County is the largest county in the
contiguous United States
The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...
.
This vast county stretches from where the bulk of the county population resides in three Census County Divisions (Fontana, San Bernardino, and Victorville-Hesperia), counting 1,793,186 people as of the 2010 Census, covering 1,730 square miles (4,480 km2), across the thinly populated deserts and mountains. It spans an area from south of the San Bernardino Mountains in San Bernardino Valley, to the
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
border and the
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...
indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...
San Bernardino Mountains
The San Bernardino Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in Southern California in the United States. Situated north and northeast of San Bernardino and spanning two California counties, the range tops out at at San Gorgonio Mountain ...
; the
Chemehuevi
The Chemehuevi are an indigenous people of the Great Basin. They are the southernmost branch of Southern Paiute.Kawaiisu
The Kawaiisu (pronounced: ″ka-wai-ah-soo″) are a Native Californian ethnic group in the United States who live in the Tehachapi Valley and to the north across the Tehachapi Pass in the southern Sierra Nevada, toward Lake Isabella and Walker ...
peoples who lived in the
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...
. These groups established various villages and settlements throughout the region that were interconnected by a series of extensive trails.Wa’aachnga was a major
Tongva
The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . Some descendants of the people prefer Kizh as an endonym that, they argue, is more historically ...
Cahuilla
The Cahuilla , also known as ʔívil̃uqaletem or Ivilyuqaletem, are a Native American people of the various tribes of the Cahuilla Nation, living in the inland areas of southern California.San Bernardino. The village was part of an extensive trade network along the Mohave Trail that connected villages in San Bernardino County from the
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...
to the
Los Angeles Basin
The Los Angeles Basin is a sedimentary basin located in Southern California, in a region known as the Peninsular Ranges. The basin is also connected to an anomalous group of east-west trending chains of mountains collectively known as the ...
.Wá’peat was a Desert Serrano village located near what is now the city of Hesperia. It was part of a series of villages located along the Mojave River. By the late 1700s, villages in the area were being increasingly encroached upon by Spanish soldiers and missionaries, who were coming into the region from Mission San Gabriel.
St. Bernardino of Siena
Bernardino of Siena, OFM (8 September 138020 May 1444), also known as Bernardine, was an Italian priest and Franciscan missionary preacher in Italy. He was a systematizer of Scholastic economics. His preaching, his book burnings, and his " b ...
. The
Franciscans
, image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg
, image_size = 200px
, caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans
, abbreviation = OFM
, predecessor =
, ...
also gave the name San Bernardino to the snowcapped peak in
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...
, in honor of the saint and it is from him that the county derives its name. In 1819, they established the San Bernardino de Sena Estancia, a mission farm in what is now Redlands.
Following Mexican independence from Spain in 1821, Mexican citizens were granted land grants to establish ranchos in the area of the county. Rancho Jurupa in 1838,
Rancho Cucamonga
Rancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Bernardino County, California, given in 1839 to the dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant formed parts of p ...
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex
, Offi ...
Mormon
Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into se ...
colonists, San Bernardino County was formed in 1853 from parts of
Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...
. Some of the southern parts of the county's territory were given to Riverside County in 1893.
In the 1980s, Northern San Bernardino County proposed to create Mojave County due to the abysmal service levels the county provided. Ultimately, the vote for county secession failed. The proposed county was from the Cajon Pass to the city of Needles.
In 1998, County administrator James Hlawek resigned after being subject to an FBI investigation for bribery. only after Harry Mays, county Treasurer-Tax Collector Thomas O’Donnell, County Investment Officer Sol Levin and three businessmen had agreed to plead guilty to federal bribery charges.
In 2004, County Supervisor Geral Eaves Pleaded guilty to bribery for accepting gifts from businesses for allowing billboards on county land.
In 2004, the county was embroiled in a corruption scandal, that lasted until 2016, over the colonies housing development with real estate developer Jeff Burum in upland. The scandal resulted in 102 million being paid to Jeff Burums real estate company. Supervisor Bill Postmus pleaded guilty to 10 felonies in regard to his previous post as county assessor. in 2020, Jeff Burum sued the county again and the county reached for a 69 million dollar settlement. 2022, the county's insurance company, Ironside, balked at paying the settlement, claiming that the county willfully "retaliate against the Colonies II Plaintiffs as part of a decades-long dispute over land and water rights in Upland, California, culminating in a malicious prosecution of Burum.”
In 2020, voters approved Measure K, which limited county supervisors to one term instead of three, while reducing pay from 250 thousand dollars to 60 thousand dollars. County Supervisors appealed the decision, only to lose in the state's appeals court.
In 2022, The Board of supervisors were pushed by a major supervisor campaign contributor Jeff Burum to vote for secession from the State of California to form the state of Empire.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water. It is the largest county by area in California and the largest in the United States (excluding boroughs in Alaska). (See Download the Database " for an explanation of this data set.) It is slightly larger than the states of
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...
,
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...
and
Rhode Island
Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
combined, and is also slightly larger than
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
. It borders both
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
and
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
.
The bulk of the population, nearly two million, live in the roughly 480 square miles south of the San Bernardino Mountains adjacent to Riverside and in the San Bernardino Valley in the southwestern portion of the county. About 390,000 residents live just north of the San Bernardino Mountains, in and around the roughly 280 square-mile area that includes the
Victor Valley
The Victor Valley is a valley in the Mojave Desert and subregion of the Inland Empire, in San Bernardino County in Southern California.
It is located east of the Mojave's Antelope Valley, north of the Cajon Pass and the San Bernardino Valle ...
. Roughly another 100,000 people live scattered across the rest of the sprawling county.
The Mojave National Preserve covers some of the eastern desert, especially between Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. The desert portion also includes the cities of Needles next to the
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...
Trona
Trona (trisodium hydrogendicarbonate dihydrate, also sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate, Na2CO3•2NaHCO3•3H2O) is a non- marine evaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has repla ...
is at the northwestern part of the county, west of
Death Valley
Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. During summer, it is the hottest place on Earth.
Death Valley's Badwater Basin is the point of lowest elevation in Nort ...
. This national park, mostly within Inyo County, also has a small portion of land within San Bernardino County. The largest metropolitan area in the
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...
part of the county is the
Victor Valley
The Victor Valley is a valley in the Mojave Desert and subregion of the Inland Empire, in San Bernardino County in Southern California.
It is located east of the Mojave's Antelope Valley, north of the Cajon Pass and the San Bernardino Valle ...
Twentynine Palms
Twentynine Palms (also known as 29 Palms) is a city in San Bernardino County, California. Twentynine Palms serves as one of the entry points to Joshua Tree National Park.
History
Twentynine Palms was named for the palm trees found there in ...
Landers
Landers may refer to:
People
* Landers (surname), a list of people surnamed Landers (including fictional people)
Places
* Landers, California, United States
* Landers Peaks, group of peaks in the northern portion of Alexander Island, Antarct ...
San Gabriel Valley
The San Gabriel Valley ( es, Valle de San Gabriel) is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, lying immediately to the east of the eastern city limits of the city of Los Angeles, and occupying the vast majority of the eastern part ...
. The San Bernardino Valley includes the cities of
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
Chino Hills
The Chino Hills are a mountain range on the border of Orange, Los Angeles, and San Bernardino counties, California, with a small portion in Riverside County. The Chino Hills State Park preserves open space and habitat in them.
Geography
The C ...
Fontana
Fontana may refer to:
Places
Italy
*Fontana Liri, comune in the Province of Frosinone
*Fontanafredda, comune in the Province of Pordenone
*Fontanarosa, comune in the Province of Avellino
*Francavilla Fontana, comune in the Province of Brindisi
* ...
Rancho Cucamonga
Rancho Cucamonga was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Bernardino County, California, given in 1839 to the dedicated soldier, smuggler and politician Tiburcio Tapia by Mexican governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant formed parts of p ...
Loma Linda
Loma Linda (Spanish for "Beautiful Hill") is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, that was incorporated in 1970. The population was 24,791 at the 2020 census, up from 23,261 at the 2010 census. The central area of the ...
,
Highland
Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
Angeles National Forest
The Angeles National Forest (ANF) of the U.S. Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains and Sierra Pelona Mountains, primarily within Los Angeles County in southern California. The ANF manages a majority of the San Gabriel Mountai ...
(part)
*
Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park is an American national park that straddles the California–Nevada border, east of the Sierra Nevada. The park boundaries include Death Valley, the northern section of Panamint Valley, the southern section of Eurek ...
(part)
*
Havasu National Wildlife Refuge
Havasu National Wildlife Refuge is a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge on the lower Colorado River in Arizona and California. It preserves habitat for desert bighorn sheep, the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher, and other animals. The refu ...
Sand to Snow National Monument
Sand to Snow National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in San Bernardino County and northern Riverside County, Southern California.
It protects diverse montane and desert habitats of the San Bernardino Mountains, southern Mojave D ...
(part)
More than 80% of the county's land is owned by the federal government. There are at least 35 official wilderness areas in the county that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. This is the largest number of any county in the United States (although not the largest in total area). The majority are managed by the
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's ...
, but some are integral components of the above listed national protected areas. Most of these wilderness areas lie entirely within the county, but a few are shared with neighboring counties (and two of these are shared with the neighboring states of Arizona and Nevada).
Except as noted, these wilderness areas are managed solely by the
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's ...
Cleghorn Lakes Wilderness
The Cleghorn Lakes Wilderness is a wilderness area in the southern Mojave Desert. It is located northeast of Twentynine Palms, California, and north of Joshua Tree National Park. It is managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
Named for the ...
Death Valley Wilderness
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''
2011
Places by population, race, and income
2010 Census
The
2010 United States Census
The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators serving ...
reported that San Bernardino County had a population of 2,035,210. The racial makeup of San Bernardino County was 1,153,161 (56.7%)
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 181,862 (8.9%)
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 439,661 (21.6%) from other races, and 102,364 (5.0%) from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...
or Latino of any race were 1,001,145 persons (49.2%).
2000
As of the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
of 2000, there were 1,709,434 people, 528,594 households, and 404,374 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 601,369 housing units at an average density of 30 per square mile (12/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 58.9%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 9.1%
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 20.8% from other races, and 5.0% from two or more races. 39.2% of the population were
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
, 5.5%
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
Tagalog
Tagalog may refer to:
Language
* Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines
** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language
** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language
* Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Taga ...
as their first language.
There were 528,594 households, out of which 43.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.5% were non-families. 18.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 3.2 people, and the average family size was 3.6 people.
The number of homeless in San Bernardino County grew from 5,270 in 2002 to 7,331 in 2007, a 39% increase.
In the county, the population was spread out—with 32.3% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,066, and the median income for a family was $46,574. Males had a median income of $37,025 versus $27,993 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the county was $16,856. About 12.6% of families and 15.80% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 20.6% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.
Government and policing
County government
As of 2021, the Board of Supervisors oversees a $7.9 billion annual budget and 25,430 employees.
The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors has 5 members elected from their districts:
* Paul Cook (First District),
* Janice Rutherford (Second District),
* Dawn Rowe (Third District),
* Chairman
Curt Hagman
Curt Hagman (born January 2, 1965) is a former Republican member of the California State Assembly, representing the 55th district. Prior to serving as state assemblyman, Hagman was the Mayor of Chino Hills and also owner of Apex Bail Bonds.
Ed ...
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
, San Bernardino County is split among 5 congressional districts:
* ,
* ,
* ,
* , and
* .
In the
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
The ...
, San Bernardino County is split among 8 assembly districts:
* ,
* ,
* ,
* ,
* the 42nd Assembly District, represented by
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independe ...
Chad Mayes
Chad Jeffrey Mayes (born April 23, 1977) is an American politician currently serving in the California State Assembly. He is an independent representing the 42nd district, encompassing parts of Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Prior to b ...
,
* ,
* , and
* .
In the
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
D ...
, San Bernardino County is split among 6 districts:
* ,
* ,
* ,
* ,
* , and
* .
Policing
Sheriff
The San Bernardino County Sheriff provides court protection, jail administration, and coroner services for all of San Bernardino County. It provides police patrol, detective, and marshal services for the unincorporated areas of the county.
Municipal police
Municipal police departments in the county are: Fontana, San Bernardino, Rialto, Ontario, Upland, Montclair, Chino, Redlands, Colton, and Barstow. The San Bernardino County Sheriff provides contract law enforcement services to 14 incorporated cities and towns: Adelanto, Apple Valley, Big Bear, Chino Hills, Grand Terrace, Hesperia, Highland, Loma Linda, Needles, Rancho Cucamonga, Twentynine Palms, Victorville, Yucaipa, and Yucca Valley. Also for the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. The Sheriff's Commanders assigned to these stations acts as each municipality's Chief of Police.
Politics
Voter registration
Cities by population and voter registration
Overview
San Bernardino County is a county in which candidates from both major political parties have won in recent elections. Democrat
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
carried the county by a majority and by double digits in 2016. The Democratic Party also carried the county in
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
won majorities of the county's votes, and in 1992 and
1996
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...
, when
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
won pluralities. Republican George W. Bush took the county in 2000 by a plurality and in
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...
by a majority. The county is split between heavily Latino, middle-class, and Democratic areas and more wealthy conservative areas. The heavily Latino cities of Ontario and San Bernardino went for John Kerry in 2004, but with a relatively low voter turnout. In 2006, San Bernardino's population exceeded 201,000, and in 2004, only 42,520 votes were cast in the city; in 2006, strongly Republican Rancho Cucamonga had over 145,000 residents, of whom 53,054 voted.
According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 2020, there were 1,016,190 registered voters in San Bernardino County. Of those, 410,197 (40.37%) were registered Democrats, 298,234 (29.35%) were registered Republicans, with the remainder belonging to minor political parties or declining to state.
On November 4, 2008, San Bernardino County voted 67% for Proposition 8, which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.
Public safety
Law enforcement
The current district attorney is Jason Anderson, who was elected in March 2018 and took office on January 1, 2019.
The county's primary law enforcement agency is the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The department provides law enforcement services in the unincorporated areas of the county and in 14 contract cities, operates the county jail system, provides marshal services in the county superior courts, and has numerous other divisions to serve the residents of the county.
Fire rescue
The county operates the San Bernardino County Consolidated Fire District (commonly known as the San Bernardino County Fire Department). The department provides "all-risk" fire, rescue, and emergency medical services to all unincorporated areas in the county except for several areas served by independent fire protection districts, and several cities that chose to contract with the department.
Crime
The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.
On December 2, 2015, in the city of San Bernardino, terrorists attacked a staff meeting being held in the Inland Regional Center, murdering 14 people and wounding 22.
Cities by population and crime rates
Education
Colleges and universities
*
Barstow Community College
Barstow Community College is a public community college in Barstow, California. It is an open-admission college serving more than 3,700 students in degree and certificate programs with approximately 120 faculty. It provides the first two years o ...
*
Brandman University
University of Massachusetts Global (UMass Global), formerly Brandman University, is a private university with 25 campuses throughout California and Washington and a virtual campus. The university offers more than 90 degree, certificate, cre ...
Chaffey College
Chaffey College is a public community college in Rancho Cucamonga, California. The college serves students in Chino, Chino Hills, Fontana, Montclair, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga and Upland. It is the oldest community college in California.
History ...
*
Copper Mountain College
Copper Mountain College (CMC) is a public community college in Joshua Tree, California. It was accredited in 2001 as the 108th such institution in the state. CMC offers a total of 24 different certificates and degrees.
History
CMC was origin ...
National University
A national university is mainly a university created or managed by a government, but which may also at the same time operate autonomously without direct control by the state.
Some national universities are associated with national cultural or po ...
(campuses in Ontario and San Bernardino)
*
Palo Verde Community College
Palo Verde College, formerly Palo Verde Junior College, is a public community college in Blythe, California.
Main Campus
Palo Verde College is located along the Colorado River in the fertile Palo Verde Valley, west of Phoenix, east of Palm Sp ...
Victor Valley College
Victor Valley College is a public community college in the southeast corner of Victorville, California. It is part of the California Community College System. The Victor Valley Community College district includes Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Val ...
Baker Valley Unified School District
Baker Valley Unified School District is a public school district based in San Bernardino County, California, United States.
References
External links
*
School districts in San Bernardino County, California
{{California-school-stub ...
Bear Valley Unified School District
Bear Valley Unified School District is a school district in San Bernardino County, California, supporting the towns of the Big Bear area such as Boulder Bay, Fawnskin, Big Bear City, Big Bear Lake, Surgarloaf, etc. The district serves seven ...
*
Beaumont Unified School District
Beaumont Unified School District is located in the central part of Riverside County in California. The district services the city of Beaumont, California
Beaumont is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, located at the summi ...
Colton Joint Unified School District
The Colton Joint Unified School District (CJUSD) in San Bernardino County, California serves the communities of Colton, Bloomington, and Grand Terrace and small portions of Fontana, Rialto and San Bernardino. The District opened in 1872.
High ...
Needles Unified School District
Needles is part of San Bernardino County in California, but is on the borders of the states of Arizona and Nevada. Needles has been a regular stop for the Santa Fe railway since the 19th century. Route 66 also runs through the town. Schools in t ...
Sierra Sands Unified School District
The Sierra Sands Unified School District is located in the Indian Wells Valley of California. It was established in 1960. It serves all of Indian Wells Valley, including the cities of Ridgecrest, Inyokern, China Lake, Johannesburg and Kernv ...
Snowline Joint Unified School District
The Snowline Joint Unified School District (SJUSD) is the school district for part of the Victor Valley in the Mojave Desert and northeastern San Gabriel Mountains, located within San Bernardino County, California.
The district extends into L ...
*
Trona Joint Unified School District
Trona (trisodium hydrogendicarbonate di hydrate, also sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate, Na2CO3•2NaHCO3•3H2O) is a non-marine evaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has repla ...
*
Upland Unified School District
Upland Unified School District is a school district located in San Bernardino County, California that serves the community of Upland, California. It has a total population of approximately 63,800 and covers a total area of 24 square miles.
Hi ...
*
Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District
Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District is a school district serving Yucaipa, California, Yucaipa (an incorporated area of San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino County) and Calimesa, California, Calimesa (an incorporated area o ...
Secondary:
*
Chaffey Joint Union High School District
Chaffey Joint Union High School District is a 9-12 school district located in San Bernardino County, California, United States that serves the communities of Ontario, Montclair, Rancho Cucamonga, and portions of Fontana, Upland, Chino, and ...
*
Victor Valley Union High School District
Victor Valley Union High School District (VVUHSD) is a school district in the Victor Valley of San Bernardino County, southern California.
It serves grades 7-12 in the Victor Valley region of the Mojave Desert, including the towns of Victorvill ...
Elementary:
*
Adelanto Elementary School District
Adelanto Elementary School District (AESD) is an elementary and middle school-only school district in San Bernardino County, California. It is headquartered in Adelanto.
It serves Adelanto and portions of Victorville.
Students at the high scho ...
Mount Baldy Joint Elementary School District
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, ...
Victor Elementary School District
Victor Elementary School District (VESD) is a school district headquartered in Victorville, California.Home Victor Elementary School District. Retrieved ...
Libraries
The San Bernardino County Library System consists of 32 branches across the county. Library services offered vary from branch to branch, but include internet access, children's story times, adult literacy services, book clubs, classes, and special events. The library system also offers e-books, digital music and movie downloads, free access to online learning through Lynda.com, and many other digital services.
City-sponsored public libraries also exist in San Bernardino County, including A. K. Smiley Public Library in Redlands, California, which was built in 1898. Other public libraries in the County include: The San Bernardino City Public Library System, Rancho Cucamonga Public Library, Upland Public Library, Colton City Library, and the Ontario City Library. These libraries are separate from the county system and do not share circulation privileges.
* Morongo Basin Transit Authority provides bus service in Yucca Valley, Joshua Tree and Twentynine Palms (including the Marine base). Limited service is also provided to Palm Springs.
*
Mountain Transit
Mountain Transit (legally the Mountain Area Regional Transit Authority) is the third largest regional transit agency in San Bernardino County, California. Mountain Transit serves the San Bernardino Mountain communities of Crestline, Lake Arrowhe ...
covers the Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear regions. Limited service is also provided to Downtown San Bernardino.
* Needles Area Transit serves Needles and the surrounding county area.
*
Omnitrans
Omnitrans, stylized as "OmniTrans," is a public transportation agency in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The largest transit operator within San Bernardino County, it serves the San Bernardino Valley. The agency was established ...
provides transit service in the urbanized portion of San Bernardino County, serving the City of San Bernardino, as well as the area between Montclair and Yucaipa.
* Victor Valley Transit Authority operates buses in Victorville, Hesperia, Adelanto, Apple Valley and the surrounding county area.
* Foothill Transit connects the Inland Empire area to the San Gabriel Valley and downtown Los Angeles.
* RTA connects Montclair, and Anaheim to Riverside County.
*
SunLine Transit Agency
SunLine Transit Agency, a transit operator in Riverside County, California (with over 3.5 million passengers a year), is a transit agency providing bus service in the Palm Springs Area, with service extending into San Bernardino Transit Center du ...
connects Cal State San Bernardino to palm springs
* Beaumont Transit Connects Downtown San Bernardino to the city of Beaumont and Banning
*San Bernardino County is also served by Greyhound buses and
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...
trains. Metrolink commuter trains connect the urbanized portion of the county with Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties.
I-10
Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally p ...
via Tippecanoe Avenue, and I-210 via 3rd Street. Terminal construction recently finished, and commercial flights began in 2022. There is also a logistics center for
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
Twentynine Palms Airport
Twentynine Palms Airport is a public use airport located six nautical miles (11 km) east of the central business district of Twentynine Palms, a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. It is owned by the County of San Be ...
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...
sued the county in April 2007 under the state's environmental quality act for failing to account for the impact of
global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who b ...
and the Audubon Society also sued in a separate case. According to Brendan Cummings, a senior attorney for the
plaintiff
A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of t ...
s: "San Bernardino has never seen a project it didn't like. They rubber-stamp development. It's very much of a frontier mentality." The plaintiffs want the county to rewrite its growth plan's environmental impact statement to include methods to measure greenhouse gases and take steps to reduce them.
According to county spokesman David Wert, only 15% of the county is controlled by the county; the rest is cities and federal and state land. However, the county says it will make sure employment centers and housing are near transportation corridors to reduce traffic and do more to promote compact development and mass transit. The county budgeted $325,000 to fight the lawsuit.
The state and the county reached a settlement in August 2007. The county agreed to amend its general plan to include a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Plan, including an
emission inventory An emission inventory (or emissions inventory) is an accounting of the amount of pollutants discharged into the atmosphere. An emission inventory usually contains the total emissions for one or more specific greenhouse gases or air pollutants, ori ...
San Antonio Heights
San Antonio Heights is a census-designated place (CDP) in the San Bernardino County, California. It is in the northern Pomona Valley and the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. The population was 3,371 at the 2010 census, up from 3,122 at the ...
Blue Jay
The blue jay (''Cyanocitta cristata'') is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to eastern North America. It lives in most of the eastern and central United States; some eastern populations may be migratory. Resident populations are ...
Crest Park
Crest or CREST may refer to:
Buildings
*The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York
*"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York
* Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerl ...
Essex
Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...
Landers
Landers may refer to:
People
* Landers (surname), a list of people surnamed Landers (including fictional people)
Places
* Landers, California, United States
* Landers Peaks, group of peaks in the northern portion of Alexander Island, Antarct ...
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
Mountain Pass
A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both human and animal migr ...
Patton
George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, and the Third United States Army in France ...
Trona
Trona (trisodium hydrogendicarbonate dihydrate, also sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate, Na2CO3•2NaHCO3•3H2O) is a non- marine evaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has repla ...
Twin Peaks
''Twin Peaks'' is an American mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cancellation in 1991. The show returned in 2017 ...
*
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
Wonder Valley
''Wonder Valley'' is a 1953 American film starring Gloria Jean.
It was shot in Arkansas in 1951 and is considered a lost film. It is believed to be the first motion picture shot entirely in Arkansas.
Cast
*Gloria Jean
*Lance Devro
*John Fontaine ...
Chemehuevi Indian Reservation
The Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the Chemehuevi Reservation (Colorado River Numic language: Nüwüwü) is a federally recognized tribe of Chemehuevi people, who are the southernmost branch of Southern Paiute people.
To celebrate their organizatio ...
La Paz County, Arizona
La Paz County is the 15th County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Arizona, located in the western part of the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 16,557, making it the second-least populous ...
)
*
Fort Mojave Indian Reservation
The Fort Mohave Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation along the Colorado River, currently encompassing in Arizona, in California, and in Nevada. The reservation is home to approximately 1,100 members of the federally recognized Fort Moj ...
(partially in
Mohave County, Arizona
Mohave County is in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, its population was 213,267. The county seat is Kingman, and the largest city is Lake Havasu City. It is the fifth largest county in the United S ...
Rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
*
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part ...
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of San Bernardino County.
† ''county seat''
Places of interest
*
Auto Club Speedway
Auto Club Speedway, originally opened as California Speedway, is a , low-banked, D-shaped oval superspeedway in unincorporated San Bernardino County, California, near Fontana. It has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1997. It was also prev ...
in Fontana, California
*
Calico Ghost Town
Calico is a ghost town and former mining town in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Calico Mountains of the Mojave Desert region of Southern California, it was founded in 1881 as a silver mining town, and was later ...
— northeast of Barstow via Interstate 15
* Zzyzx — a small desert settlement that used to be a health spa and is now the
Desert Studies Center
The Desert Studies Center (DSC) is a field station of the California State University located in Zzyzx, California, United States in the Mojave Desert. The purpose of the Center is to provide opportunities to conduct research, receive instruct ...
Mojave Narrows Park
Mojave Narrows Park near Victorville, California, Victorville in San Bernardino County, California is a regional park that features a fishing lake and hiking trails.
Once described as "one of Southern California's least-known parks," it is a lo ...
Mojave Trails National Monument
Mojave Trails National Monument is a large U.S. National Monument located in the state of California between Interstates 15 and 40. It partially surrounds the Mojave National Preserve. It was designated by President Barack Obama on February 12, ...
Castle Mountains National Monument
Castle Mountains National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the eastern Mojave Desert and northeastern San Bernardino County, in the state of California.Sand to Snow National Monument
Sand to Snow National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in San Bernardino County and northern Riverside County, Southern California.
It protects diverse montane and desert habitats of the San Bernardino Mountains, southern Mojave D ...
Snow Summit
Snow Summit is a ski resort that was established in 1952 and is in the San Bernardino Mountains in Southern California. It is located by Big Bear Lake along with its sister resort Bear Mountain; these two resorts which operate under the same man ...
,
Bear Mountain (Ski Area)
Bear Mountain, formerly Goldmine Mountain, is a ski area established in 1969, in the San Bernardino National Forest in Southern California United States. It is located by Big Bear Lake, two miles apart from its sister mountain, Snow Summit; th ...
, and Snow Valley Mountain Resort are home to Southern California's premier winter ski resorts. Mountain High, although technically located in Los Angeles County, is also an alternative to Snow Summit and Bear Mountain because of its proximity to San Bernardino County.
*The Pacific Crest Trail, officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail (PCT), passes through San Bernardino County.
List of school districts in San Bernardino County, California
This is a list of school districts in California.
California school districts are of several varieties, usually a Unified district, which includes all of the Elementary and High Schools in the same geographic area; Elementary school districts, w ...
The Daily Report
''The Daily Report'' was a newspaper published in Ontario, California, under private ownership between 1885 and 1965 and group ownership from 1965 to 1990.
Private ownership History
The newspaper's first issue, under the title ''Ontario Record,'' ...
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
The ''Inland Valley Daily Bulletin'' is a daily newspaper based in Rancho Cucamonga, California, serving the Pomona Valley and southwest San Bernardino County. The ''Daily Bulletin'' is a member of the Southern California News Group (formerly th ...
Redlands Daily Facts
The ''Redlands Daily Facts'' is a paid daily newspaper based in Redlands, California, serving the Redlands area. The ''Daily Facts'' is a member of Southern California News Group (formerly the Los Angeles Newspaper Group), a division of Digita ...