Modoc County, CA Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Local governments generally cannot regulate aircraft noise: under the federal Noise Control Act and City of Burbank v. Lockheed Air Terminal (1973), the FAA controls aircraft operations, routes and noise, and operational restrictions at airports must go through the FAA's Part 161 process. Consistent with this, the Modoc County Code does not impose aircraft-noise limits or flight curfews. Chapter 16.04 (Airport Rules and Regulations, Ord. 252, 1977), which applies to county airport facilities, addresses safety and operations rather than noise: Section 16.04.050 requires all aeronautical activity to conform to the State Aeronautics Act and Federal Air Regulations, sets a minimum traffic-pattern altitude (not below 800 feet except as needed for takeoff and landing), prohibits formation flying in the pattern, and requires engines stopped during boarding. Section 16.04.150 broadly bars committing any nuisance on the airport. The zoning title includes an Airport Hazard (AH) zone (Chapter 18.90) governing land-use compatibility around airports, again for safety, not noise enforcement. Notably, the county's Right-to-Farm disclosure (Section 8.28.040) lists 'the operation of machinery of any kind during any twenty-four-hour period (including aircraft)' among accepted agricultural inconveniences, recognizing that agricultural aircraft (such as crop-dusters) operating to accepted standards are not a nuisance. Residents concerned about aircraft noise should contact the FAA or the airport operator.