Rowlett, TX Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Aircraft noise is one of the activities Rowlett's Code of Ordinances specifically removes from local regulation. Sec. 22-206(5) lists 'aircraft operations' among the sources exempt from the noise standards in Sec. 22-204, alongside railway locomotives and cars (Sec. 22-206(4)). This reflects the legal reality that aircraft in flight and airport operations are regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) under federal law, which generally preempts local noise rules over navigable airspace. As a result, the city's decibel limits, quiet hours, and nuisance provisions do not apply to planes, helicopters, or other aircraft overflying Rowlett, a Dallas-area suburb on Lake Ray Hubbard within the broader Dallas-Fort Worth airspace. Residents disturbed by aircraft noise should direct complaints to the FAA or the operating airport rather than to the City of Rowlett, since the city has not adopted, and under federal preemption generally could not adopt, an enforceable aircraft-noise ordinance. Ground-based airport equipment that is not part of flight operations could still fall under the general noise limits, but in-flight and operational aircraft noise itself is outside the city's Chapter 22 authority. Other exemptions in Sec. 22-206 cover emergency work, HVAC equipment, the unamplified human voice, and houses of worship bells.