Trinity County, CA Noise Ordinances: Outdoor Music (2026)

Trinity County addresses outdoor music chiefly through its Outdoor Festivals chapter (Title 5, Chapter 5.20), which requires a permit for outdoor music festivals and similar large gatherings - relevant in a county whose forests, rivers, and Trinity Alps backcountry attract seasonal events. The application must specify 'all loudspeakers and sound equipment to be used and the intensity of the sound, in decibels, at the boundaries of the premises' and the location of all loudspeakers (Sec. 5.20.040). In deciding whether to grant the permit, the Board of Supervisors considers factors including the 'prevention of unreasonable noise,' and it may impose operating conditions and suspend or revoke the permit if the event disturbs the public peace. The chapter also addresses crowd, sanitation, water, and security requirements typical of festival permitting. The chapter does not set a single fixed decibel ceiling in the Code; instead it forces disclosure of expected sound levels at the boundary and lets the County impose conditions case-by-case. For outdoor music that is not a permitted festival - a backyard band, a wedding, an outdoor bar - the County relies on general public-nuisance authority under Chapter 8.64 and, for land uses, the General Plan exterior-noise standards the Code references (55 dBA day / 50 dBA night at the property line, cited at Section 17.43.060). Because the entire county is unincorporated, the Chapter 5.20 festival permit and these nuisance tools apply countywide, including near Weaverville, Hayfork, Lewiston, and the lake and river recreation areas. Use permits for venues under Chapter 17.32 can also attach event and noise conditions.