Sacramento City Code section 8.68.060 caps exterior noise at agricultural and residential property at 55 dBA from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 50 dBA from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. A data center's cooling and generators must comply.
Sacramento's Noise Control ordinance, City Code Chapter 8.68, sets exterior noise standards measured at agricultural and residential property. The base limit is 55 dBA during the day (7 a.m.-10 p.m.) and 50 dBA at night (10 p.m.-7 a.m.). Each limit drops 5 dBA for impulsive or simple-tone noise, or noise consisting of speech or music - so steady tonal hums from chillers and transformers face a 50 dBA daytime and 45 dBA nighttime cap at nearby homes. A data center's continuous cooling towers and backup generators are modeled against these property-line limits.
Exceeding the section 8.68.060 exterior noise standards is a City Code violation; enforcement can bring citations and, for a permitted project, breach of noise conditions on its conditional use permit.
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