Amador County, CA Noise Ordinances: Decibel Limits (2026)

Unlike some California jurisdictions that publish daytime and nighttime decibel tables by zoning district, Amador County's noise ordinance does not establish any numeric decibel (dBA) limit for the unincorporated county. The public nuisance noise ordinance (Chapter 9.44) instead relies on qualitative standards: it is unlawful to make any disturbing, excessive, or offensive noise, and noise that is plainly audible from a neighboring property between ten p.m. and seven a.m. is treated as a prima facie violation. In deciding whether noise is a nuisance, the county weighs factors such as the level of the noise, the ambient noise, proximity to residences, zoning appropriateness, time of day, and duration, but it does not measure against a fixed sound-meter number. Numeric decibel standards that do apply in the county come from state law for specific sources, most notably the California Vehicle Code's 95 dBA cap on modified exhaust for light vehicles (VEH 27151). For most residential, short-term rental, winery, tasting-room, and event-venue noise complaints, enforcement turns on audibility and disturbance rather than a meter reading. Residents seeking a hard dBA number for a particular situation should contact the Amador County Planning Department or the Sheriff, but should not assume a countywide decibel ceiling exists.