Tuolumne County, CA Noise Ordinances: Amplified Music & Events (2026)

Amplified music has been the central driver of Tuolumne County's noise debate, largely because of an increase in parties and loud music at short-term, Airbnb-type vacation rentals, especially during summer and holidays. Despite this, the unincorporated area still has no ordinance that specifically restricts amplified music or sets a decibel cap. The county FAQ confirms there is no general noise ordinance. When the Board of Supervisors revived the issue in 2024, the concept it discussed (modeled on neighboring Calaveras County) would have prohibited amplified noise between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. when it could be heard by an enforcement officer at 100 feet or more from the source, with exemptions for school, emergency, religious, agricultural, mining, fairgrounds, and other permitted activities, and would have been a civil infraction rather than a crime. However, as of the latest reporting that ordinance remained in development and had not been adopted, so it is not enforceable. Until and unless it is enacted, loud amplified music is addressed under California Penal Code section 415, which lets the Sheriff cite a person who maliciously and willfully disturbs another with loud and unreasonable noise. Officials have acknowledged the limits of relying on this state law without a dedicated local ordinance.