Bernalillo County, NM Noise from Specific Sources: Car Alarm Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Governs
- Car alarms, horns, theft devices
- Prohibited
- Unreasonably loud/harsh alarm sound
- Also prohibited
- Sounding for unnecessary/unreasonable time
- Exempt use
- Horn use when traffic is held up
- Cross-check limit
- 45 dB(A) residential nighttime cap, § 30-115
Summary
Sounding a car alarm or theft-deterrent device on public streets in unincorporated Bernalillo County is a violation once it goes beyond a genuine danger warning: County Code § 30-126 bars unreasonably loud or harsh alarm noise and sounding any device for an unnecessary or unreasonable length of time.
The sounding of any horn, signaling device, or theft device/alarm on any automobile, motorcycle, streetcar or other vehicle on any street or public place of the county, except as a danger warning; the creation by means of any such signaling device of any unreasonably loud or harsh sound; and the sounding of any device for an unnecessary and unreasonable period of time shall be considered in violation of this article. The use of any signaling device when traffic is for any reason held up shall be exempt from prosecution.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 92).
Full Breakdown
" Three things are prohibited: sounding the device for any purpose other than a genuine danger warning, creating an unreasonably loud or harsh sound through the signaling device, and sounding any device for an unnecessary and unreasonable period of time. A car alarm that goes off once and stops when the owner responds is not the target of this section; an alarm that cycles for an extended period in a parking lot or residential street, with no one silencing it, falls squarely within the "unnecessary and unreasonable period" language.
The section carries one built-in exemption: sounding a horn or signaling device is allowed, without risk of prosecution, when it is used because traffic is held up. Because § 30-126 sits inside Article IV alongside the general sound-level limits, a persistent alarm can also be measured against the property-line decibel caps in § 30-115 (45 dB(A) residential at night) if a neighbor wants to document the disturbance for a nuisance complaint under § 30-112. The county sheriff's office and code enforcement both take reports on chronic alarm nuisances, particularly in dense residential pockets of the South Valley and North Valley.
Violations & Fines
A violation of § 30-126 is punishable as provided in § 1-6, and a chronic or recurring alarm that causes discomfort or annoyance to residents can additionally be treated as a public nuisance under § 30-112, opening the door to a restraining order or injunction from a court of competent jurisdiction against the responsible party.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal for a car alarm to keep going off in Bernalillo County?
Does honking a horn in traffic count as a violation?
Who do I report a chronic car alarm to?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bernalillo County
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