Rowlett sets enforceable decibel caps in Sec. 22-204 measured five feet inside the receiving property line: residential 65 dBA (L10) day / 60 dBA night; commercial/agricultural 72 day / 67 night; industrial 85 dBA at all times. Companion L90 limits run 10 dBA lower, and exceeding any limit by 20 dBA is a violation at any time.
Rowlett's noise ordinance is decibel-based. Sec. 22-204 makes it a violation to operate any stationary sound source that creates a 10th-percentile (L10) or 90th-percentile (L90) sound level exceeding the table limits for the receiving land-use district, measured five feet above the property boundary over a period of not less than 10 and not more than 60 minutes. The L10 limits are: residential 65 dBA from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and 60 dBA from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. (60 dBA also on Sunday 7:00-9:00 a.m.); commercial/agricultural 72 dBA day and 67 dBA night; and industrial 85 dBA day and night. The corresponding L90 limits are residential 55/50, commercial 62/57, and industrial 75 dBA. Sec. 22-204(b) adds that exceeding the standards by 20 decibels at any point in a measurement period is itself a violation, and that when a source can be measured in more than one category, the most restrictive limit applies at the boundary. Measurements use a Type II or better sound level meter on the A-weighting network per ANSI standards (Sec. 22-203). Definitions for dBA, L10, L90, ambient sound level, and sound level meter appear in Sec. 22-202. Certain sources are exempt under Sec. 22-206.
Exceeding the Sec. 22-204 limits is a violation of Chapter 22, punishable under the general penalty, Sec. 1-13, by a fine not exceeding $500.00 where no other penalty is fixed, with each day a separate offense. The director may grant a time-of-compliance variance under Sec. 22-208. Texas Penal Code Sec. 42.01 separately presumes noise unreasonable above 85 dB after official notice.
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