Franklin County, WA Noise Ordinances: Vehicle Noise (2026)

010(A) makes it unlawful for anyone to cause or allow a sound that creates a "noise disturbance" to originate from property in their possession. Subsection (B)(1) spells out what counts: sound from a radio, car stereo, portable stereo, television, musical instruments, a sound amplifier, a whistle, an internal-combustion engine, or any other sound-producing device that emanates frequently, repetitively or continuously from a motor vehicle on property in a residential area, judged against what would annoy or disturb a reasonable person of normal sensitivity. The same clause reaches stationary sources (buildings, structures or property) using the identical device list, so a car stereo blasting from a driveway and one blasting from a garage are treated the same way.

04 (animal noise), but carries no exemption for vehicle stereos or engine noise itself. 020 lists seventeen exemption categories, aircraft, emergency equipment, parades, agricultural sounds and more, none of which cover ordinary car-stereo or engine noise in a residential area. Enforcement runs through the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, which can issue a criminal citation or refer the case to Franklin County District Court for a civil infraction. Because the trigger is "frequently, repetitively or continuously," a single momentary honk or radio blast at normal volume will not usually support a citation, but sustained bass or an idling engine that carries into neighboring yards will.