Merced, CA Public Conduct: Loud Party Ordinance (2026)

64, Disruptive Parties and Gatherings on Private Property, does not criminalize a loud party outright; it creates a cost-recovery system. 004, when an officer responds to a party, gathering, or individual noise disturbance and finds it violates the Penal Code or otherwise threatens public peace, health, safety, or welfare because of crowd size, noise, disruptive behavior, traffic, or property damage, the officer directs the responsible party or property owner to abate it and gives written and oral warning: if police must return to the same address within 72 hours of that initial response, the responsible party or owner will be billed for the added law enforcement services.

006 spells out who pays and what: the person who created the disturbance, the party host, the property owner, or, if the responsible person is a minor, that minor's parents or legal guardians, are jointly and severally liable for the actual cost of police services beyond the first 72-hour response, plus any damage to public property and any injuries to officers from the response. The police department calculates the cost, and the city manager bills the responsible party, who has 15 days to pay before the city can pursue collection, including collection costs. 010 makes clear the chapter doesn't limit any other legal remedy the city might have.