Mason County, WA Noise Ordinances: Decibel Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- Mason County Code Chapter 9.36, Noise Control
- Class A to Class A limit
- 55 dBA, residential source to residential receiver
- Class C to Class C limit
- 75 dBA, industrial or farm source and receiver
- Short-term deviation
- Up to 15 dBA for 1.5 minutes per hour
- First-offense penalty
- $30 civil penalty, rising to $250 by third violation
- Enforcing agency
- Mason County Sheriff's Office, 24-hour administration
Summary
In unincorporated Mason County, Washington, every property carries an Environmental Designation for Noise Abatement (EDNA) class of A, B or C, and Mason County Code Section 9.36.060 caps sound crossing a property line by the class pairing of the source and receiving property. A Class A residential receiving property caps incoming noise at 55 dBA from another Class A source, 57 dBA from Class B, and 60 dBA from Class C.
9.36.060 - Maximum permissible sound levels—General application. Except where the motor vehicle noise standards or the watercraft noise standards in this chapter are applicable, the maximum permissible noise levels are set forth below in the following table and are subject to any applicable deviations or exemptions set forth in Sections 9.36.070 through 9.36.100. EDNA OF NOISE SOURCE EDNA OF RECEIVING PROPERTY Class A Class B Class C Class A 55 dBA 57 dBA 60 dBA Class B 57 65 65 Class C 65 70 75 ... 9.36.070 - Deviations. The maximum permissible noise levels set forth in Section 9.36.060 are subject to the following deviations. At the hour of the day or night the applicable noise limitations in the previous section above may be exceeded for any receiving property by no more than: (1)Five dBA for a total of fifteen minutes in any one-hour period; or(2)Ten dBA for a total of five minutes in any one-hour period; or(3)Fifteen dBA for a total of 1.5 minutes in any one-hour period.
Full Breakdown
The Mason County Board of County Commissioners adopted the noise-control chapter (Chapter 9.36) in Ordinance 54-89 (1989) to protect residents' sleep, repose and property values from excessive sound. Section 9.36.060 sets the maximum permissible noise level as a function of two EDNA classes: the class of the property where the sound originates and the class of the property receiving it. Class A covers residential, multifamily, camps, parks, resorts, hospitals and similar habitation uses; Class B covers commercial living accommodations, dining, retail, banks, offices and non-residential recreation; Class C covers storage, warehousing, industrial fabrication, agriculture and silviculture.
The table sets a Class A-to-Class A limit of 55 dBA, Class A-to-Class B of 57 dBA, and Class A-to-Class C of 60 dBA; a Class B source is capped at 57 dBA into Class A, 65 dBA into Class B, and 65 dBA into Class C; a Class C source is capped at 65 dBA into Class A, 70 dBA into Class B, and 75 dBA into Class C. Section 9.36.070 allows short deviations above those caps: up to 5 dBA for 15 minutes per hour, 10 dBA for 5 minutes per hour, or 15 dBA for 1.5 minutes per hour.
Enforcement runs on a 24-hour basis by qualified law enforcement personnel under Section 9.36.020's findings, and Section 9.36.150 requires sound level meters meeting American National Standards Institute Type I or Type II specifications.
Violations & Fines
Violating the Section 9.36.060 sound limits carries a civil penalty under Section 9.36.310: thirty dollars for a first violation, one hundred dollars for a second, and two hundred fifty dollars for a third and each later violation of the same regulation within one year. Section 9.36.320 also makes a continuing or unabated violation a misdemeanor punishable under Mason County Ordinance 767 when a person refuses a sheriff's deputy's lawful order to stop or abate the noise.
Frequently Asked Questions
What decibel limit applies to noise from my neighbor's property in unincorporated Mason County?
Can noise exceed these limits temporarily, for example during a loud task?
How is a noise violation measured and enforced?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Mason County
Compare Mason County to another location·View the Washington noise ordinances overview
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