Lane County, OR Noise Ordinances: Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound (2026)
Amplified music rules in Lane County, OR, also called sound permit, PA system, or live music ordinances, set decibel limits, time-of-day restrictions, and when permits are required.
Key Facts
- Daytime dBA limit
- 60 dBA, 7 a.m.-10 p.m.
- Nighttime dBA limit
- 50 dBA, 10 p.m.-7 a.m.
- No-meter standard
- Plainly audible 10 p.m.-7 a.m.
- Enforcement
- Land Management Division Manager
- Event exemption
- 7 a.m.-11 p.m. only
- Variance decision deadline
- 10 days after application
Summary
Playing music or running any loudspeaker, radio, stereo, or musical instrument loud enough to disturb neighbors violates Lane Code 6.225.010 if it exceeds 60 dBA by day, 50 dBA at night, or is simply "plainly audible" inside a neighboring home or 50 feet into a public right-of-way between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. The Land Management Division enforces it, and organized events are exempt only until 11 p.m.
"Sound Producing Device" means including but not limited to: A. Loudspeakers, public address systems. B. Radios, tape recorders and/or tape players, phonographs, television sets, stereo systems including those installed in a vehicle. C. Musical instruments, amplified or unamplified. ... A. Sound Producing Devices. No person shall create or assist in creating or permit the continuance of noise from a sound producing device, by the following acts, or in excess of the following limits: 1. When measurement made. When measured at or within the boundary of the property on which a noise sensitive unit - that is not the source of the sound - is located, or within a noise sensitive unit that is not the source of the sound, a. exceeds fifty (50) dBA between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. of the following day. b. exceeds sixty (60) dBA between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. of the same day. 2. When measurement not made. Is plainly audible at any time between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. of the following day.
Full Breakdown
, and heat pumps or air conditioning units. 010A bans creating or permitting noise from any of those devices in excess of two tests. m. if it is "plainly audible", meaning a listener can make out the information content, distinguish raised from normal speech, or recognize "comprehensible musical rhythms", inside a neighboring noise-sensitive unit or on a public right-of-way 50 feet or more from the source. on weekdays. 020, which the Manager must approve, deny, or condition within 10 days of the application.
Violations & Fines
Violating LC 6.225.010 is enforced administratively under LC Chapter 5 and can also be pursued as a nuisance abatement action under LC Chapter 9, per LC 6.225.030A. A property owner who knows about the noise, has the ability to stop it by ejecting the person or removing the device, and fails to act is personally liable to the same extent as whoever is making the noise, under LC 6.225.013, unless the noise comes from a trespasser the owner never consented to having there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do the decibel limits apply to my neighbor's stereo or just business noise?
Can I get permission to run loud music past 10 p.m. for an event?
How is the noise actually measured?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lane County
Compare Lane County to another location·View the Oregon noise ordinances overview
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