St. George, UT Noise from Specific Sources: Bar & Nightclub Noise (2026)
Key Facts
- Noise threshold
- Audible >100 ft from the building
- Curfew
- No dance music 1:00-6:00 a.m.
- Applies to
- Taverns and restaurants hosting dancing
- Citation
- St. George City Code Sec. 3-2A-4
- Enforcement
- License suspension/revocation plus misdemeanor charge
Summary
St. George's public dance hall license law makes loud music for dancing unlawful once it can be heard distinctly past 100 feet from the building, and the rule explicitly reaches taverns and restaurants that host dancing to draw customers.
Unnecessary loud playing, use or operation of any radio, musical instrument, band, audio equipment or other device for the production or reproduction of sound for dancing purposes shall be unlawful, and such musical sounds shall be considered unnecessarily loud if they can be heard distinctly more than one hundred feet (100') from the building or structure wherein the dance is operated. It shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of the noise standard if all or any portion of the music sounds, such as the bass rhythm, can be heard distinctly outside the said distance limit.
4. It shall be unlawful for any person maintaining or having control of a public dance hall to allow or permit an intoxicated or disorderly person to enter, be upon, or remain within such hall. The licensee shall be required to provide adequate security personnel at all times the dance hall is open to the public, and such personnel shall be over the age of twenty-one (21) years and shall not have been convicted of an offense involving alcohol or moral turpitude during the period of such employment or within two (2) years prior to their employment. Persons employed as such security personnel shall either be private security officers licensed by the state or shall be approved by the chief of police. (Ord. 5-1-1990, 5-10-1990)
ARTICLE B. RESIDENTIAL SOLICITATION
3-2B-1: Purpose 3-2B-2: Definitions 3-2B-3: No Other City License Or Approval Required
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2026-062, passed August 6, 2026).
Full Breakdown
St. George's public dance hall license law expressly applies to taverns and restaurants that permit or sponsor dancing, and it bars unnecessarily loud sound equipment: music for dancing is unlawful once it can be heard distinctly more than 100 feet from the building, with audible bass rhythm past that line treated as prima facie proof of a violation. The same section cuts off dance music between 1:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., with a tighter Sunday-into-Monday restriction. Compliance is a license condition enforced by the city council and police, alongside the city's separate general noise rules elsewhere in the code.
Violations & Fines
Operating sound equipment audible past the 100-foot line is a license violation, grounds for suspension or revocation, and a class B misdemeanor under the city's general penalty section, punishable by fine and up to six months in jail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does St. George's noise rule cover bars and nightclubs?
How loud can a bar play music for dancing?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. George
Compare St. George to another location·View the Utah noise from specific sources overview
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