Photo: Frank Schulenburg · CC BY-SA 4.0Living in Downieville, CA: what to set up and who to call
An EPA health-based violation from 2024 is still open for the Downieville Public U.d. water system. Downieville has no town government of its own, so Sierra County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Sierra-Plumas Joint Unified School District.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Downieville, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Downieville.
Power comes from PG&E
PG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Downieville. Its homes paid an average of 37.5¢ per kWh in 2025, about $174 a month (its average across California, for customers on its standard service). California lets you buy power from another supplier; 66% of PG&E’s home customers do, and PG&E still delivers it.
Start or move service: pgecorp.com
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Downieville Public U.d. water system
The Downieville Public U.d. water system supplies almost all of Downieville. It draws surface water and serves 783 people in all.
1 health-based violation reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026: a lead and copper treatment requirement (Lead and Copper Rule Revisions), beginning Oct 2024. 78% of the 5,327 systems serving 501–1,000 people had none. 1 older violation is still open, since 2024: a lead and copper treatment requirement (Lead and Copper Rule Revisions), per EPA’s records.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2022–Dec 2024, was 2.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 69% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. CA4610002.
Which providers serve Downieville
This card will list the home internet providers the FCC’s National Broadband Map shows in Downieville, the share of addresses that can get 100/20 Mbps and the share with fiber, with the map’s “as of” date.
Source to come: FCC Broadband Data Collection.
We don’t have Downieville’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Downieville.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Downieville is in Sierra-Plumas Joint Unified School District.
Test scores and every school: see Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
No town hall: the county runs things
Downieville is unincorporated, so Sierra County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jul 2021; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Downieville is in ZIP code 95936
ZIP codes where Downieville residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Downieville | ZIP’s residents in Downieville |
|---|---|---|---|
| 95936 | Downieville, CA | 100% | 80% |
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Downieville
Who supplies Downieville’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Downieville Public U.d. water system (EPA ID CA4610002). It reported 1 health-based violation to EPA in the five years to October 2026: a lead and copper treatment requirement (Lead and Copper Rule Revisions). 78% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 2.0 ppb (Jan 2022–Dec 2024), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Downieville?
PG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 37.5¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What ZIP codes are in Downieville?
95936. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Downieville in?
Sierra-Plumas Joint Unified School District.
How do I register to vote in Downieville?
In California you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before). Elections here are run by the Sierra County Clerk-Elections. Check your registration at voterstatus.sos.ca.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet (FCC): pending.