Sioux Falls Code § 93.003 sets maximum sound pressure levels at the property boundary: 60 dBA daytime / 55 dBA nighttime in residential use districts and 65 dBA (all hours) in commercial districts. Nighttime hours run 10:30 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. Measurements are A-weighted, taken at least 25 feet from the source and at least 4 feet above the ground.
Chapter 93 of the Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances (American Legal Publishing) is the city's noise regulation chapter. § 93.001 defines a 'decibel' as a logarithmic dimensionless unit, 'noise' as any unwanted sound causing adverse psychological/physiological effect, and the 'L90' as the A-weighted sound pressure level exceeded 90% of the measurement period. § 93.003 then sets the use-district maxima: residential 60 dBA day / 55 dBA night; commercial 65 dBA at all hours. The nighttime period runs 10:30 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. daily. § 93.002 separately makes it unlawful to operate any amplified sound device between 10:30 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. if the sound is plainly audible at the source property boundary, 50 feet from a parked vehicle, or 100 feet from a moving vehicle — this is the city's 'plainly audible' standard, which can be enforced without a sound-level meter. A special permit regime applies inside the Main Street Sioux Falls Business Improvement District (downtown): permitted music/entertainment events may reach L90 70 dBA, with up to five 77 dBA peaks in any three-minute window; downtown permits expire 10:30 p.m. weeknights and 11:30 p.m. Friday/Saturday. Sioux Falls's combined 60-day/55-night residential standard plus 10:30 p.m. cutoff is moderate by U.S. city standards — many peers extend the cutoff to 11 p.m. and use 55/50 dBA.
Violation of Chapter 93 is a municipal infraction; civil penalties and abatement orders typical. Police may also charge disorderly conduct under SDCL § 22-18-35 (Class 2 misdemeanor) for unreasonable loud noise made to cause public alarm.
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