Bellevue, NE Noise Ordinances: Quiet Hours (2026)
Quiet hours in Bellevue, NE, also called the noise ordinance, nighttime noise rules, or residential quiet time, define the hours during which excessive noise is prohibited.
Key Facts
- Quiet hours
- 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
- Prohibited acts
- Yelling, shouting, hooting, whistling, singing
- Where
- Public streets citywide
- Enforcing agency
- Bellevue Police Department
- Max penalty
- $500 fine or 6 months jail (§ 1-11)
- Governing section
- Bellevue Code § 20-17
Summary
In the City of Bellevue, Nebraska, Code § 20-17 makes it unlawful to yell, shout, hoot, whistle or sing on public streets, particularly between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., or at any hour if it disturbs the quiet of a nearby office, dwelling, hotel or residence. The Bellevue Police Department enforces the ban citywide.
It shall be unlawful to yell, shout, hoot, whistle or sing on the public streets, particularly between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., or at any time or place so as to annoy or disturb the quiet comfort or repose of persons in any office, or in any dwelling, hotel or other type of residence or of any persons in the vicinity.
Full Breakdown
Section 20-17 sits in Chapter 20, Article I of the Bellevue Code of Ordinances, the city's general offenses chapter, alongside a cluster of noise rules the council adopted together by Ordinance 4058 on October 19, 2021 and amended by Ordinance 4083 on March 1, 2022. The section has two branches: a nighttime curfew naming 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. for yelling, shouting, hooting, whistling or singing on public streets, and a broader around-the-clock ban on the same conduct anywhere it annoys or disturbs the quiet comfort of people in an office, dwelling, hotel or other residence.
Unlike the amplified-sound rule next door in § 20-16, which lets the City Council waive the prohibition for a scheduled public-use-facility event, § 20-17 carries no waiver or permit mechanism: the conduct is unlawful outright whenever the nighttime hours or the disturbance test is met. It works alongside § 20-16 (audible-at-50-feet radios and speakers), § 20-18 (vehicle exhaust and blower noise) and § 20-20 (pile drivers and other heavy equipment barred 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.) to form Bellevue's street-noise scheme. No specific penalty is written into § 20-17 itself, so the citywide general penalty clause, § 1-11, controls the fine and jail exposure for anyone cited under it.
Violations & Fines
Because § 20-17 lists no specific fine, a citation falls under the Code's general penalty, § 1-11: a maximum fine of $500.00, up to six months in jail, or both, at the sentencing court's discretion. Section 1-11 also makes each day a violation continues a separate offense, so repeated late-night disturbances can be charged and fined more than once.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Bellevue's quiet hours for street noise?
Can I be fined for noise outside the 11 PM to 7 AM window?
What penalty does a Bellevue noise citation carry?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bellevue
How Bellevue compares: Cities with the Strictest Noise Ordinances·Compare Bellevue to another location·View the Nebraska noise ordinances overview
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