Noise Ordinances in Lake Charles, LA (2026)
5 verified noise ordinances for Lake Charles, Louisiana, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Construction Hours
Lake Charles limits construction and demolition noise, power tools, hammers and concrete trucks to weekdays between 5:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., Saturdays between 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., with all such work barred on Sundays and federal holidays. Sec. 13-7.1(b)(4) lets the building permit office grant a variance to work outside those hours.
Lake Charles Legal Construction Noise Hours
Some RestrictionsLake Charles, LA Code of Ordinances § 13-7.1(b)(4)
(4)Construction and demolition activity, operation of power tools, mechanical devices, equipment hammers, concrete trucks, or other similar devices, excluding emergency work, between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. the next day on weekdays, before 7:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m. on Saturdays, all day on Sundays, or on federal holidays unless granted a variance by the building permit office i...
Barking Dogs
Lake Charles treats a dog that barks, whines, or howls in an excessive, continuous, or untimely manner as a nuisance animal under Sec. 4-37, requiring two neighbor witness statements or one witness plus an officer's declaration before the director can act. Fines escalate from $100 to $500 with impoundment on a fourth offense.
Lake Charles Barking Dog Nuisance Rule
Some RestrictionsLake Charles, LA Code of Ordinances Sec. 4-37
Sec. 4-37. - Nuisance animal. (a)The director or his designated agent may designate an animal a nuisance if it engages in any of the following nonexclusive behaviors or activities:(1)Molests passersby, moving vehicles, or other animals while at large;(2)Damages private or public property;(3)Barks, whines, or howls in an excessive, continuous, or untimely manner; or(4)Causes unsanitary condition...
Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound
Lake Charles bans amplified radios, TVs, sound systems and musical instruments, amplified or not, that stay plainly audible 50 feet from the source and annoy, disturb or endanger a reasonable person's peace. Sec. 13-7.1(b)(1) and (b)(14) set the 50-foot audibility test the police use to write excessive-noise citations.
Lake Charles Amplified Sound 50-Foot Rule
Some RestrictionsLake Charles, LA Code of Ordinances § 13-7.1(b)(1),(14)
(a)(2)"Plainly audible" means any sound that can be detected by the person issuing the violation using his or her unaided hearing faculties of normal acuity...(b)Prohibited noises...(1)Operation of radios, televisions, or other amplified sound reproduction devices in such a manner as to be plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from the building, structure or vehicle in which it is located or...
Decibel Limits
Lake Charles measures impulsive noise complaints against an 80-decibel cap under Sec. 13-7.1(d)(2): sound cannot equal or exceed 80 dB(C) between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., and the same 80 dB(C) limit applies overnight if the impulsive sound occurs fewer than four times an hour. Repeat impulsive sound four-plus times an hour is measured as continuous sound instead.
Lake Charles 80-Decibel Noise Standard
Some RestrictionsLake Charles, LA Code of Ordinances § 13-7.1(d)(2)
(2)To aid in the enforcement of this section the police department may make impulsive sound measurements. Such measurements may be used by the trier of fact to aid in making a determination as to whether a violation has occurred...Accordingly, for purposes of this provision the following guidelines shall be used:a.Between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., impulsive sound should not equal or exceed 80 d...
Vehicle Noise
Lake Charles treats loud car stereos, altered mufflers and squealing tires as prohibited noise under Sec. 13-7.1. A car radio or amplifier plainly audible 50 feet away, a muffler modified to boost engine sound, or tires deliberately made to squeal all count as violations when they annoy a person of ordinary sensitivity, and police can cite based on what they can plainly hear.
Lake Charles Vehicle Noise and Muffler Rules
Some RestrictionsLake Charles City Code § 13-7.1(b)
(1)Operation of radios, televisions, or other amplified sound reproduction devices in such a manner as to be plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from the building, structure or vehicle in which it is located or operated and which, because of its volume, level, duration or character annoys, disturbs, injures or endangers the comfort, health, peace or safety of reasonable persons of ordinary...