EXHIBIT 23.1 CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS The Board of Directors First Community Bancorp: We consent to the incorporation by reference in the registration statement on Form 8-K of First Community Bancorp of our report dated February 29, 2000, relating to the consolidated balance sheets of First Community Bank of the Desert and subsidiary as of December 31, 1999 and 1998, and the related consolidated statements of operations, changes in stockholders' equity and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 1999, which report appears in the Form S-4 (Registration Statement No. 333-93827) of First Community Bancorp, /s/ KPMG LLP San Diego, California June 8, 2000