Quiet hours in Virginia Beach, VA — also called the noise ordinance, nighttime noise rules, or residential quiet time — define the hours during which excessive noise is prohibited.
Virginia Beach City Code Sec. 23-69 caps sound entering another residential dwelling at 55 dBA between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., and 65 dBA between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. Measurements are taken inside the receiving residence at least four feet from the wall nearest the source, with doors and windows closed.
Virginia Beach noise rules sit in Chapter 23, Article II of the City Code (Secs. 23-63 through 23-78), enacted under Va. Code Sec. 15.2-1200 home-rule authority. Sec. 23-69 sets the residential-receiving-dwelling standard: 55 dBA from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. and 65 dBA from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., measured at least four feet from the nearest interior wall with windows and doors closed. Sec. 23-65 places enforcement with the police department, who may issue summonses, and preserves the right of private citizens to seek a magistrate's summons on probable cause. Sec. 23-71 lists specific prohibitions, and Sec. 23-78 sets penalties. Council kept the 2009 decibel-meter framework after rejecting a proposed 'plainly audible' standard 5-6 on December 6, 2022.
Violations of Article II are typically punished as a Class 3 misdemeanor under Sec. 23-78, with escalating treatment for repeat offenses. Police enforcement is via Virginia Beach Police non-emergency at 757-385-5000; legal questions go to the City Attorney's Office at 757-385-4531.
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See how Virginia Beach's quiet hours rules stack up against other locations.
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