Augusta-Richmond County, GA Noise from Specific Sources: Bar & Nightclub Noise (2026)
Key Facts
- Weeknight cutoff
- 11:00 p.m. Sun-Thu
- Weekend cutoff
- Midnight Fri/Sat
- Audibility limit before cutoff
- 300 feet
- Audibility limit after cutoff
- 100 feet, Sec. 3-6-2(b)
- Max penalty
- $1,000 fine / 60 days jail
Summary
Bars and nightclubs get extra hours before Augusta-Richmond County's noise chapter tightens. Code Sec. 3-6-2(a) lets amplified music, live bands and PA systems run at a 300-foot audibility limit until 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until midnight on Friday and Saturday, after which the stricter 100-foot nighttime cap in subsection (b) takes over on any venue still playing music.
(a)Restrictions of 300 feet for 7:00 a.m. through 11:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 7:00 a.m. through 12:00 midnight on Friday and Saturday.(1)Mechanical sound-making devices. It is unlawful for any person or persons to play, use, operate, or permit to be played, used, or operated any radio receiving device, television, stereo, musical instrument, phonograph, sound amplifier or other machines or devices for the producing, reproducing or amplifying of sound and/or noise at such a volume and in such a manner so as to create, or cause to be created, any noises or sounds which are plainly audible at a distance of 300 feet or more from the place, building, structure or vehicle, or in the case of real property, beyond the property limits, in which it is located, whichever is farthest, between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 12:00 midnight on Friday and Saturday.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Recodification).
Full Breakdown
cutoff Sunday through Thursday. A separate 'commercial advertising' clause in Sec. 3-6-2(a)(3) reaches sound cast onto public streets specifically to attract customers to a building, covering a bar's outdoor speakers or barker system the same way it covers a storefront's advertising sound. The chapter's baseline rule in Sec. 3-6-1 defines 'plainly audible' as audible to an ordinary listener at the stated distance, whether or not words are intelligible, and specifically counts bass reverberations as prohibited noise on their own, which matters for club sound systems running heavy low-end.
Once the applicable cutoff hour passes, the venue falls under the tighter 100-foot nighttime standard in Sec. 3-6-2(b) unless it stops amplified sound entirely. Section 3-6-4 sets the penalty for the whole chapter, applicable to any bar or nightclub violation the same as a residential one.
Violations & Fines
A bar or nightclub that lets music carry past the 300-foot line before its cutoff hour, or that keeps playing past 11 p.m. weeknights or midnight on weekends, is committing a misdemeanor under Sec. 3-6-4: a fine up to $1,000 and up to 60 days in jail per violation, with each night of continuing noise treated as a separate offense under the Code's general continuing-violation rule.
Frequently Asked Questions
How late can a bar in Augusta-Richmond County play amplified music?
Does the ordinance treat outdoor speakers used to draw in customers differently?
What is the penalty for a nightclub noise violation?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Augusta-Richmond County
Compare Augusta-Richmond County to another location·View the Georgia noise from specific sources overview
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