Idaho Falls, ID Noise Ordinances: Construction Hours (2026)

Idaho Falls handles construction noise inside its nuisance noise ordinance, City Code § 5-4-11. Subsection (C)(6), headed Construction Noise in Residential Areas, says no person shall create, continue, or cause any plainly audible noise created by construction activities within an area that is zoned residential between the hours of 12:00 am and 5:30 am.

Each part of that sentence does work. The test is whether the noise is plainly audible, so the ordinance asks what can be heard and the quoted text sets no decibel figure for construction. The rule reaches anyone who creates, continues, or causes the noise, which means it is not limited to the worker holding the tool. The trigger is zoning: the ban applies where the area is zoned residential.

The same section lists defenses. Subsection (D)(4)(a) covers construction noise between the hours of 5:30 am and 12:00 am where the source of the sound is in an area zoned residential. Read together, the provisions split the day at 5:30 am. From 5:30 am until 12:00 am, construction sound from a residential-zone source is permitted. From 12:00 am to 5:30 am, plainly audible construction noise in a residential zone is prohibited. Idaho Falls therefore protects a short overnight window and leaves the evening open to construction work.

Zoning also decides whether any hour limit applies at all. Construction in industrial or manufacturing zones is permitted at any hour under the defense provision.

A contractor who needs the 12:00 am to 5:30 am window in a residential zone can apply to the Public Works Director for a night construction noise permit. The Director may issue it when the applicant shows unavoidable loss or urgent need, and the permit is capped at fourteen consecutive days.