Noise ordinances › Arlington, TX

Arlington noise ordinance: quiet hours, limits and complaints

Last updated: September 20, 2026

Documenting this? A dated log of when the noise started, when it stopped and how loud it got is what Arlington acts on. Log noise levels for a complaint — free, runs in your browser, records no audio.

Quiet hours in Arlington

None. Sec. 2.03(M) contains no clock time, and the state offense it adopts applies at any hour: Texas Penal Code § 42.01(a)(5) makes it disorderly conduct to intentionally or knowingly make "unreasonable noise in a public place ... or in or near a private residence that he has no right to occupy," day or night, with subsection (c)(1) deeming an act to occur near a residence if it produces its consequences there. The Nuisance chapter sets no construction hours, no party curfew and no amplified-sound window; Arlington's Unified Development Code and construction chapter govern building activity through permits and are not summarized here. The only timing element in the noise rules is the state law's notice trigger: after a magistrate or peace officer has told the person the noise is a public nuisance, a level above 85 decibels is presumed unreasonable (§ 42.01(c)(2)).

Decibel limits — or rather, the lack of them

The City's ordinance has none; the only number comes from state law. Sec. 2.03(M) declares two noise nuisances: (1) keeping an animal or bird whose "frequent or long-continued noise disturbs the peace and quiet of persons in the neighborhood or the occupants of adjacent premises who have and possess normal nervous sensibilities," and (2) "any condition prohibited by the Texas Penal Code, Section 42.01(a)(5), as amended." That statute prohibits unreasonable noise in a public place or in or near a private residence the person has no right to occupy, and § 42.01(c)(2) supplies the figure: "a noise is presumed to be unreasonable if the noise exceeds a decibel level of 85 after the person making the noise receives notice from a magistrate or peace officer that the noise is a public nuisance." There is no zone table, no night level, no property-line measurement rule and no plainly-audible distance in the Nuisance chapter; a report of a loud party in Arlington is judged on reasonableness by the responding officer, and the 85-decibel presumption applies only after a warning. Do not attribute a city-set decibel limit to Arlington.

What the ordinance actually says

Nuisance Chapter, Sec. 2.03(M): "Noise. 1. The keeping of any animal or bird which, by causing frequent or long-continued noise disturbs the peace and quiet of persons in the neighborhood or the occupants of adjacent premises who have and possess normal nervous sensibilities. 2. Any condition prohibited by the Texas Penal Code, Section 42.01(a)(5), as amended."

Nuisance Chapter, Sec. 3.02(A): "Any person violating Sections ... 2.03(M), Noise; of Article II of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and each day the violation continues shall be a separate offense. Each such offense shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars and No Cents ($500.00)."

Texas Penal Code § 42.01(a)(5): "(5) makes unreasonable noise in a public place other than a sport shooting range, as defined by Section 250.001, Local Government Code, or in or near a private residence that he has no right to occupy;"

Texas Penal Code § 42.01(c): "For purposes of this section: (1) an act is deemed to occur in a public place or near a private residence if it produces its offensive or proscribed consequences in the public place or near a private residence; and (2) a noise is presumed to be unreasonable if the noise exceeds a decibel level of 85 after the person making the noise receives notice from a magistrate or peace officer that the noise is a public nuisance."

Texas Penal Code § 42.01(d): "An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor unless committed under Subsection (a)(7) or (a)(8), in which event it is a Class B misdemeanor."

Quoted verbatim from the official codified text (Arlington City Code of Ordinances, "Nuisance" Chapter (amended through Ord. No. 24-067, 12-17-2024): Article II "Nuisances Enumerated," Sec. 2.03(M) "Noise" (subsection 1, animals; subsection 2, any condition prohibited by Texas Penal Code § 42.01(a)(5); as amended by Ord. 07-045, 6-19-07); Article III "Prohibited Acts," Sec. 3.01 (committing nuisances) and Sec. 3.02(A) (penalty, up to $500 per day for 2.03(M)). Incorporated state law: Texas Penal Code § 42.01 "Disorderly Conduct," subsections (a)(5), (c)(2) and (d) (statutes.capitol.texas.gov). The City publishes its code as chapter PDFs on arlingtontx.gov; there is no separate noise chapter. Text read on 2026-09-20.). Verified against the live code on 2026-09-20. Ordinances get amended — before acting on a specific provision, check the linked official code. This page is a plain-language summary, not legal advice.

How to file a noise complaint in Arlington

Per arlingtontx.gov (City phone directory): Police non-emergency dispatch 817-274-4444; emergencies 9-1-1. Ongoing nuisance conditions, including animal noise under Sec. 2.03(M)(1), are reported to the Action Center at 817-459-6777 (Action@arlingtontx.gov) or Code Compliance at the same number (Code@arlingtontx.gov), and non-emergency police reports can be filed online through the Police Reporting System. Because the party and music rule is the state disorderly-conduct offense, a police officer is the enforcer; under § 42.01(c)(2) the officer's warning that the noise is a public nuisance is what makes an 85-decibel reading a presumption of unreasonableness, so the sequence is warning first, citation on return. Sec. 3.02(A) makes a 2.03(M) violation a misdemeanor with a fine of up to $500, each day a separate offense; the state offense is a Class C misdemeanor (§ 42.01(d)).

Step by step, with what to log and what to expect after you file: how to file a noise complaint in Arlington. For the general playbook — documenting the problem, talking to a landlord or HOA, when 311 beats 911 — see the noise complaints guide.

Worth knowing

(1) Arlington has no noise ordinance in the usual sense: the City's only noise text is two sentences in the Nuisance chapter, one for animals and one that adopts the state disorderly-conduct offense by reference, so the operative law for a loud party is Texas Penal Code § 42.01. (2) The 85-decibel figure often quoted for Texas cities is a state presumption, not a limit, and it applies only after a magistrate or peace officer has given notice; before the warning the question is simply whether the noise is unreasonable. (3) Intent matters: the state offense requires that the noise be made "intentionally or knowingly," and it reaches a private residence only when the person has no right to occupy it, so it is aimed at noise coming into your home from outside rather than at your own household. (4) The animal standard uses the old "normal nervous sensibilities" phrasing and requires frequent or long-continued noise. (5) The City's code is published as separate chapter PDFs rather than on a code-hosting platform; the Nuisance chapter carries its own ordinance history (Ord. 89-60 through 24-067) and its provisions were last touched on noise by Ord. 07-045 in 2007. (6) Penalties run in parallel: up to $500 per day under the City's Sec. 3.02(A), and a Class C misdemeanor (a fine-only offense) under state law. (7) Construction hours, if any, live in the Unified Development Code and building permits, not in the Nuisance chapter; the search of arlingtontx.gov's chapter PDFs found no other noise provision.

Document it before you report it

Arlington enforces mostly by audibility, but a log of measured levels still makes a complaint concrete and credible. Take a reading right here: the meter below runs in your browser and records nothing, and stopping it saves a dated report. Check how loud your block is on the Arlington noise map. For time-stamped measurement history you can show a landlord or code officer, the app keeps a log.