Caddo Parish, LA Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)

Caddo Parish's comprehensive noise ordinance, Article VI of Chapter 32 (Ord. No. 5072, adopted 2011, amended by Ord. No. 6020 in 2020), sets maximum sound levels by property type in § 32-163 but carves out specific rules for vehicles in § 32-164(5). Under that section, motor vehicles and motorcycles on parish traffic ways are exempt from the general decibel table only if 'adequate mufflers or sound dissipative devices are properly installed,' meaning 'no person shall operate or cause to be operated any motor vehicle or motorcycle not equipped with a muffler ... in good working order and in constant operation,' and no one may remove or disable a muffler except for maintenance, repair or replacement.

Horns and similar signaling devices sounded for more than five consecutive seconds lose their exemption too, unless used as a genuine danger warning. Section 32-164(15) and (16) separately regulate vehicle stereos: personal or commercial vehicular music equipment cannot be run so it is 'plainly audible at a residential property line between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.,' and personal vehicle audio cannot be 'plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet in any direction from the operator' at any hour. Enforcement runs through the parish's noise control officer, and § 32-166 makes a clear violation of this article punishable by a civil penalty of up to $500.00 or 30 days' imprisonment, with each continuing day a separate offense.

A narrower, older-style rule in § 32-167 bans engine-brake or 'Jake brake' use specifically on Jefferson Paige Road between U.S. Highway 80 and Jolly Napier Road, carrying the same up-to-$500.00, up-to-30-day penalty.