Georgetown, TX Noise Ordinances: Industrial Noise (2026)

Georgetown's Noise Control ordinance scales its decibel limits to zoning, giving industrial and commercial operations more latitude than residential areas while still capping noise. Under Section 8.16.030, industrial-zoned property (as defined by the City's Zoning Ordinance) may not exceed 72 decibels during the daytime or 65 decibels during the nighttime. Commercial or other business-zoned property is held to 70 decibels daytime and 63 decibels nighttime. Residential property and abutting rights-of-way are the strictest at 63/56 decibels. Critically for facilities near homes, the ordinance provides that when noise is made on property falling under more than one of the four enumerated categories, the lowest maximum decibel level applies, so an industrial operation adjacent to residential land may effectively be held to the tighter residential cap along the boundary. A Chapter 8.16 violation is enforced as a Class C misdemeanor under Section 1.08.010. The City was reviewing the ordinance and its exemptions (Section 8.16.080) in 2025, including how construction and equipment noise should be treated, so industrial operators should confirm current limits and any applicable exemptions with the City. State law (Penal Code 42.01) plays only a secondary role here, since the city decibel limits are more specific.