The Antelope Valley Mosquito & Vector Control District was established by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in 1958 as a public health agency. The District's mission is to protect the public health of its citizens, improve the enjoyment of outdoor recreation, and enhance economic development by reducing vector populations.

A "vector" is defined in the California Health and Safety Code Section 2002 as "any animal capable of transmitting the causative agent of human disease or capable of producing human discomfort or injury including, but not limited to mosquitoes, flies, mites, ticks, other arthropods, and rodents and other vertebrates."