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Noise ordinances › Harris County, TX
Harris County noise ordinance: quiet hours, limits and complaints
Harris County, TX regulates noise under Texas Penal Code Section 42.01 (Disorderly Conduct). Quiet hours: None set: state law applies at any hour (no county ordinance). No general county noise ordinance or decibel limit: state law bans unreasonable noise in public or near another's home; over 85 decibels after a peace officer's or magistrate's notice is presumed unreasonable. Below: the exact code language, who actually takes complaints, and a link to the official text.
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Documenting this? A dated log of when the noise started, when it stopped and how loud it got is what Harris County acts on. Log noise levels for a complaint — free, runs in your browser, records no audio.
| Quiet hours | None set: state law applies at any hour (no county ordinance) |
|---|---|
| Limit type | No general dB limit — audibility / nuisance standard |
| Headline limit | No general county noise ordinance or decibel limit: state law bans unreasonable noise in public or near another's home; over 85 decibels after a peace officer's or magistrate's notice is presumed unreasonable |
| Official code | Texas Penal Code Section 42.01 (Disorderly Conduct) |
Quiet hours in Harris County
Neither Harris County nor state law sets quiet hours for unincorporated Harris County. The governing rule, Texas Penal Code § 42.01(a)(5), applies at any hour: a person commits disorderly conduct by intentionally or knowingly making unreasonable noise in a public place, or in or near a private residence that he has no right to occupy, and the statute names no times of day. No Harris County noise ordinance was found, and the bills that would have given counties noise powers did not pass. Cities inside the county set their own hours; in the City of Houston, for example, the city's Chapter 30 applies (see the Houston noise ordinance page).
Decibel limits — or rather, the lack of them
There is no decibel limit as such. The only number in the governing law is a presumption in Texas Penal Code § 42.01(c)(2): a noise is presumed to be unreasonable if it exceeds a decibel level of 85 after the person making it has received notice from a magistrate or peace officer that the noise is a public nuisance. The statute does not say where, how or with what weighting the 85 decibels is measured (it names no distance and no property line), and before any notice, or below 85 decibels, the question is simply whether the noise is unreasonable. An act counts as occurring in a public place or near a private residence if it produces its offensive or proscribed consequences there (§ 42.01(c)(1)). A sport shooting range does not count as a public place for the noise rule, so range noise heard near a home is still covered, and lawfully conducted space flight activities are excluded (§ 42.01(a)(5), (g)); and does not apply to students younger than 12 at a public school campus during regular school hours (§ 42.01(f)).
What the ordinance actually says
Texas Penal Code § 42.01(a): "A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly:" ... "(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;"
§ 42.01(c)(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."
§ 42.01(c)(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;"
§ 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."
§ 12.23: "An individual adjudged guilty of a Class C misdemeanor shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $500."
Quoted verbatim from the official codified text (Texas Penal Code Section 42.01 (Disorderly Conduct), with Section 12.23 (Class C misdemeanor). Texas Constitution and Statutes site (statutes.capitol.texas.gov), which says the statutes "are current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025"; § 42.01 was last amended by Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 188 (H.B. 3065), Sec. 3, eff. September 1, 2023. No Harris County noise ordinance or regulation was found: a search for "noise" on harriscountytx.gov returned "No results found" on 2026-10-27, and the Texas Legislature's bill histories show that bills to let certain counties adopt noise rules did not become law (S.B. 1801, 2003; H.B. 182, 2007; H.B. 1115, 2009; H.B. 295, 2017; H.B. 4314, 2019; H.B. 775, 2021; H.B. 3641, 2025), each ending with a committee referral, a committee left pending, or a committee report sent to Calendars. Inside cities in the county, city ordinances apply (for example Houston's Chapter 30). Text read 2026-10-27.). Verified against the live code on 2026-10-27. 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 Harris County
In unincorporated Harris County, call the Harris County Sheriff's Office non-emergency line, (713) 221-6000, for a loud party or music happening now, and 911 for an emergency; the Sheriff's Office website lists "Emergency: 9-1-1" and "Non-Emergency: (713) 221-6000". Because the 85-decibel presumption only starts after a peace officer or magistrate has told the person that the noise is a public nuisance, a warning matters: after it, noise above 85 decibels is presumed unreasonable. Disorderly conduct by unreasonable noise is a Class C misdemeanor (§ 42.01(d)), punishable by a fine of up to $500 (§ 12.23). Inside a city, call that city's police: the City of Houston has its own noise ordinance and police non-emergency line (see the Houston page). Harris County Public Health's neighborhood nuisance program (713.274.6300) investigates conditions such as accumulated rubbish, standing water, high weeds and dilapidated structures under the Texas Neighborhood Nuisance Abatement Act; noise is not among the nuisances it lists. Sources: https://www.harriscountyso.org/, https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.42.htm and https://publichealth.harriscountytx.gov/About/Divisions/Environmental-Public-Health/Neighborhood-Nuisance.
Step by step, with what to log and what to expect after you file: how to file a noise complaint in Harris County. 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) Jurisdiction: no Harris County noise ordinance or regulation was found on the County's website, and bills to give counties that power have not become law: the Legislature's bill histories show H.B. 775 (2021, "Relating to the adoption of noise regulations by certain counties; creating a criminal offense; authorizing fees") last referred to the Senate Local Government committee on 05/14/2021, and H.B. 3641 (2025, "Relating to the authority of counties to regulate noise levels in residential areas; creating a criminal offense") last referred to the same committee on 05/16/2025; H.B. 899 (2023), aimed at counties of more than 3.3 million people, which is Harris County, passed the House but was last referred to the Senate Local Government committee on 04/19/2023; earlier bills in 2001, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2017 and 2019 also ended without passing. So in unincorporated areas the state disorderly conduct law is the noise law, while cities such as Houston enforce their own ordinances inside city limits. (2) Intent matters: § 42.01 requires that the person act intentionally or knowingly. (3) The 85-decibel figure is a presumption, not a limit: it applies only after notice from a magistrate or peace officer, and the statute sets no measuring point or method. (4) Exclusions: a sport shooting range as defined by Local Government Code § 250.001 does not count as a public place (noise from one heard near a home is still covered), lawfully conducted space flight activities, and students younger than 12 at a public school campus during regular school hours (§ 42.01(a)(5), (f), (g)). (5) Harris County Public Health's neighborhood nuisance program covers unsanitary and unsafe conditions under the Texas Neighborhood Nuisance Abatement Act, not noise. (6) The statutes site says its text is current through the 89th Legislature's 2nd Called Session, 2025; § 42.01 was last amended in 2023 (H.B. 3065).
Document it before you report it
Harris County has no decibel limit and asks only whether the noise is unreasonable, but a log of measured levels still makes a complaint concrete and credible. Take a quick reading with the free online decibel meter — it runs in your browser and records nothing — and check how loud your block is on the Houston noise map. For time-stamped measurement history you can show a landlord or code officer, the app keeps a log.
