City
Madera
Madera is an incorporated city in Madera County with an estimated 2025 population of 69,017. It handles many rules and services inside its limits. The county still handles property records, taxes, courts, elections, public health, and many household programs.
Starting point
Confirm the address is inside local limits first.
If the address is inside Madera, city or town offices may handle local permits, code, and services. If it is outside limits, county routing may be the better first stop.
What changes the answer: A mailing city is not always the same as city government jurisdiction.
How local government works here
The city line changes some rules, but not every public office.
The mailing address can say Madera even when the property sits outside local limits. Check the city line before relying on a local rule or permit page.
City limits choose the local counter
Inside Madera, the city usually handles permits, zoning, parking, business licenses, and local code. Outside the city line, start with county planning or building.
The county still handles county work
Madera County handles property value and tax bills. It also handles deeds, court, elections, health, and many aid programs. Living inside Madera does not move those jobs to the city.
A provider can have its own boundary
Water, sewer, fire, schools, transit, trash, and power may belong to a special district or other provider. Use the address, parcel, or service bill to find the right agency.
Place answer
Madera curbside cleanup has a set-out routine
Madera's residential curbside cleanup helps with bulky household items, but it has city-limit, timing, pile-size, sorting, and hazardous-waste rules.
Read the full explanation2025 population
69,017
Land area
20.082 sq mi
Water area
0 sq mi
Local front desk
Start with the task in front of you.
Madera is incorporated. Start with the city for work inside its limits, while Madera County still handles property records, taxes, courts, elections, many benefits, and county alerts. Madera County is the public-health layer.
- Property Open the property-tax path
Assessed value, exemptions, tax bills, and appeals
Madera County assessor handles value and exemptions. The clerk of the board handles a formal value appeal. The tax collector handles the bill, payment, and penalties.
- Records Open the records path
Deeds, birth and death records, marriage records, and name changes
Madera County recorder is the usual deed and public-record door. Vital-record access depends on the record and year. A legal name change or divorce decree can involve Superior Court.
- Property work Open the local-office path
Building permits, ADUs, zoning, code, water, and septic
Start with the city planning or building office for an address inside Madera. Start with the county for an address outside local limits.
- Housing Open the housing path
Rent rules, repairs, notices, and eviction papers
Start with a local rent, housing, or code office if one serves the address. Court papers go to the Superior Court self-help path, and the deadline on the papers keeps running.
- Household help Open the benefits path
CalFresh, Medi-Cal, CalWORKs, General Assistance, and IHSS
Madera County social-services agency is the main local door. Coverage, food, cash aid, and in-home support remain separate programs with separate notices.
- Public health Open the health path
Vaccines, disease reporting, health records, and local health programs
Madera County public health is the local health jurisdiction. Health coverage and benefits still use separate program doors.
- Business Open official business licensing
Business setup, seller's permits, local licenses, and regulated work
State filings and tax accounts do not replace Madera zoning, licensing, building, fire, or health approvals for the address.
Browse business licensing offices - Neighborhood services Open the local-office path
Potholes, streetlights, graffiti, trash, and service requests
For a city-owned street or service inside Madera, start with the local request system. County roads, Caltrans routes, utilities, private property, and separate service providers use different doors.
- School and care Open the school and care path
School enrollment, student records, and child-care checks
The school district handles assignment and records. County offices can help with some family services, while the state licenses child-care facilities.
- Parking Open the parking path
Residential, guest, overnight, and local parking permits
A local parking permit is separate from a citation, moving ticket, and toll notice. Match the permit to the address, vehicle, district, or parking facility.
- Tickets Open the ticket path
Traffic court, parking citations, and toll notices
Madera County Superior Court handles traffic court matters. A city or issuing agency handles parking. The toll operator handles toll notices.
- Safety Open the emergency path
Emergency alerts, evacuations, smoke, roads, and power
Use the county or city alert system for local warnings. Follow the local emergency office for evacuation wording, then use the state fire, smoke, road, and utility sources for the matching layer.
Official city doors
Start local when the address is inside Madera.
The official website is always here. Direct service links appear only when the California Porch source trail supports them; an unlisted service has not been guessed.
County handoff
Keep the county layer close.
Madera does not replace the county for records, property taxes, courts, elections, benefits, public health, or county alerts. The official doors stay together below.
Madera County
Practical notes
Office, map, permit, and paperwork notes for Madera
Place answer · Cars and driving · Reviewed July 6, 2026
Madera Metro covers fixed routes and curbside Dial-A-Ride
Madera Metro provides fixed-route bus service plus Dial-A-Ride and ADA paratransit options, with route and scheduling help through the city's transit office.
Place answer · Rules and licenses · Reviewed July 4, 2026
Madera business licenses usually need a planning check first
Madera asks local business license applicants to clear the proposed location and activity with Planning before the license application is processed.
Place answer · Rules and licenses · Reviewed June 30, 2026
Madera outdoor watering starts with the current city stage
Madera posts outdoor water-use regulations by stage, including watering days, time windows, runoff limits, and hose rules for city residents.
Countywide answer · Rules and licenses · Reviewed July 4, 2026
Madera County permits work better with an address or APN
Madera County's online permit page asks people to have the property address or Assessor's Parcel Number ready before they apply, pay, or check permit status.
Countywide answer · Home and property · Reviewed July 14, 2026
Madera County alerts work better when your phone is already signed up
MCAlert is Madera County's primary warning system, while MaderaAware and Genasys show address-based evacuation zones, current status, and road closures.
County practical note · Rules and licenses · Reviewed July 1, 2026
Winter wood burning in the Valley gets a daily status
In the San Joaquin Valley, residential wood-burning rules can change by county and day during the winter Check Before You Burn season.
Stories & Notes
Stories and local context in Madera County
Place story · History and culture
Madera County Museum keeps the old courthouse working as memory
The old Madera County Courthouse now holds local museum rooms for farming, flumes, military history, family stories, and the original courtroom.
Place story · History and culture
Madera County Museum turns the old courthouse into a local memory house
Madera County Museum sits in the old 1900 courthouse, with three floors of exhibits on agriculture, pioneer families, military history, water, and the original courtroom.
Countywide story · Outdoors
Bass Lake gives Madera County a warm-water mountain day
Bass Lake sits in the Sierra National Forest above Oakhurst, with camping, boating, fishing, hiking, day-use areas, group areas, and accessible facilities at several recreation sites.
County place story · History and culture
A mountain train keeps Madera County's logging story moving
The Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad near Fish Camp gives Madera County a living link to Sierra logging country, with narrow-gauge track, Shay locomotives, and a small museum stop.
County place story · History and culture
Fairmead turned landfill work into an Ice Age fossil story
The Fossil Discovery Center near Fairmead grew from fossils found at a Madera County landfill, including Ice Age animals from the San Joaquin Valley.