Homestead, FL Noise from Specific Sources: Car Alarm Limits (2026)

Sec. 19-22(a) of the Code's noise article defines 'Alarm' to mean 'any fire, burglary, motor vehicle or civil defense alarm, whistle or similar stationary emergency signaling device,' expressly folding vehicle alarms into the ordinance's coverage. Sec. 19-23(a) then bans, generally, any 'noise disturbance' made by 'any method or device' within the city, and Sec. 19-23(d) separately bars an outdoor loudspeaker, paging or signaling device from creating a noise disturbance. Sec. 19-24 lists specific exemptions, including cries for help, sounds from authorized emergency vehicles, and 'fire alarms and burglar alarms, including any testing of such alarms,' but motor vehicle alarms are conspicuously absent from that exemption list, meaning a car alarm gets no special pass the way a home burglar alarm does.

Sec. 19-25 sets how a violation is measured: primarily by the ordinary hearing of a reasonable person without a microphone or hearing aid, taken at or within 50 feet of the real property line where the alarm is located. Sec. 19-26 makes any business owner or manager responsible if their premises creates a noise disturbance, and Sec. 19-27 lets someone apply for a temporary permit, capped at 3 to 10 days depending on the reason, if an activity can't otherwise comply. Chapter 19 sets none of its own fines, so enforcement runs through the Code's general penalty provision.