Morgan County, IN Noise Ordinances: Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound (2026)

In unincorporated Morgan County, Indiana, it is unlawful under § 94.01 to generate any unreasonably loud, disturbing or unnecessary noise or sound that interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property, or that disturbs the comfort, repose, health, safety, peace or welfare of a person or livestock; there is no separate decibel limit printed in the code. § 94.02 defines DISTURBING as noise 'unreasonable in its degree, as perceived by a person of ordinary sensibilities,' UNNECESSARY as noise a person could mitigate without unduly restricting their conduct, and UNREASONABLY LOUD as noise 'substantially incompatible with the time and location.' When deciding whether amplified music or other sound violates the ordinance, § 94.04 directs the county to weigh the time of day, proximity to residential structures, whether the sound is recurrent or constant, its volume and intensity, whether it has been 'enhanced in volume, range or intensity by any type of electronic or mechanical means,' the zoning character of the area, whether it comes from a lawful business or labor activity, and whether the source could control it without unreasonable burden.

The County Sheriff and deputies enforce the chapter and issue citations, and the County Prosecutor or County Attorney may separately pursue an injunction or other equitable remedy (§ 94.06). A related vehicle-noise rule in § 94.05 separately bars operating any vehicle that produces unreasonably loud noise between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. where five or more residences sit within 750 feet of the vehicle.