10 rules for unincorporated Clayton County, Georgia.
Verified from official government sources
In unincorporated Clayton County, playing a radio, stereo or other sound device between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. that is plainly audible 50 feet away is prima facie evidence of a noise violation. There is no fixed county-wide decibel meter for homes.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.3(2)
The operation of any set, instrument, phonograph, recorder, compact disc player, or other machine, or device any day between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. ... plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from the building, structure, or vehicle in which it is located shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this section.
Clayton County sets no fixed daily start/stop hours for construction. Loud or prolonged construction noise is judged by the 50-foot reasonable-person standard, and a special noise permit (valid up to 45 consecutive days) is required for construction that cannot meet the ordinance.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.5(1)
All permits issued shall state all conditions which, in the judgment of the director, are necessary to minimize the adverse impact of noise activities on residential or other noise-sensitive areas ... In the case of construction activities, no such permit shall be valid for more than 45 consecutive days, provided that the director is further authorized to renew such permits upon subsequent appl...
Persistent animal noise is not exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance. The § 62-3.4(11) farm-noise exception expressly does not cover animal noise within 500 feet of a residentially zoned district, and habitual barking is also handled by Animal Control.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.4(11)
Farm equipment, farm machinery or other noise consistent with a lawfully permitted use within an AG zoning classification; however, this exception shall not apply to animal noise within 500 feet of a residential zoned district.
Leaf blowers, mowers, edgers and other domestic power equipment are exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance only when they have a working muffler and are used 8 a.m.–9 p.m. on weekdays or 10 a.m.–9 p.m. on weekends and holidays.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.4(9)
The operation of lawn mowers, edgers, trimmers and power driven hedge shears, and other domestic power-operated equipment when operated with a properly functioning muffler meeting manufacturer's standards, and when such operation is between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on weekdays and 10:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on weekends and holidays.
Clayton County bars loudspeakers and sound amplifiers cast onto public streets for advertising, and playing amplified music louder than needed for voluntary listeners in the room or vehicle. Commercial street announcements must be made in person without mechanical devices.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.3(3)
Loudspeakers and amplifiers for advertising. The using, operating, or permitting to be played, used, or operated, of any radio receiving set, musical instrument, phonograph, loudspeaker, sound amplifier, or other machine or device for the producing or reproducing of sound which is cast upon the public streets for the purpose of commercial advertising or attracting the attention of the public.
Clayton County cannot regulate aircraft noise. Section 62-3.4(8) exempts aircraft-related noise while planes are in flight under FAA or Department of Defense jurisdiction. Hartsfield-Jackson operations are governed by federal law, not the county noise ordinance.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.4(8)
Aircraft-related noises associated with aircraft while in flight and while under the jurisdiction of the Federal Aviation Administration or the Department of Defense. Also, aircraft-related noises associated with the takeoffs and landings of aircraft with technical difficulties, in any kind of distress, under emergency orders of air traffic control.
Noise made in the ordinary course of lawfully permitted businesses in industrial-zoned areas is exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance. Industrial operations outside their zoning or beyond ordinary business activity remain subject to the general noise rules.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.4(12)
Noise created in the ordinary course of existing lawfully permitted businesses in industrial zone classifications.
Clayton County's only numeric decibel cap—110 decibels—applies to activities on county and publicly owned property, not to ordinary residential noise. Homes are judged by the plain-audibility (50-foot) reasonable-person test, not a decibel meter.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.4(4)
...where the noise level for the activity measures 110 decibels or more between the hours of 8:01 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. or where the noise level for the activity measures 110 decibels or more between the hours of 9:01 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. In all cases the measurement shall be taken at the point of origin of the noise.
Outdoor concerts, parades, fireworks displays and other special events are exempt from Clayton County's noise ordinance only when a county permit is obtained, and only within the hours and sound levels set as permit conditions. The county may cap loudness and duration.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.4(3)
Parades, fireworks displays, concerts and other special events for which a permit has been obtained from the county, within such hours and sound level limits as may be imposed as a condition for the issuance of the permit. Clayton County reserves the right to set limits on sound levels as well as the duration of sounds emanating from these activities.
Clayton County prohibits loud vehicle exhaust, unnecessary horn use and rattling loads. Modified or special exhaust devices that increase or change a vehicle's sound are banned, and horns may be used only as a danger warning.
Clayton County Code § 62-3.3(6)
The discharge into the open air of the exhaust of any steam engine, stationary internal combustion engine or motor boat except through a muffler or other device which will effectively prevent loud or explosive noises therefrom. The use of special or modified standard equipment exhaust devices on automotive vehicles to increase or modify the sound emitted by the exhaust is prohibited.
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