Noise ordinances › Henderson, NV

Henderson noise ordinance: quiet hours, limits and complaints

Last updated: October 1, 2026

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Quiet hours in Henderson

Chapter 8.84 has no general curfew; "The time of day or night the sound occurs" is one of the six listed, non-exclusive factors under the general prohibition (8.84.020 B.3). The clocks are in the specific prohibitions (8.84.030): unreasonably loud and raucous loudspeakers, amplifiers and public address systems are banned from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on weekdays and from 10:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m. on weekends and holidays within or next to residential areas, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, libraries and similar places, and on public property when plainly audible across its property line (B); yelling, shouting, hooting, whistling or singing on public streets is banned from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., or at any time if it unreasonably disturbs (C); building erection, excavation, demolition, alteration or repair in a residential district, and street excavation there, is allowed only from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., except urgent work under a building-official permit of up to 30 days or night work the building official approves, and from April 1 to September 30 work may start at 5:00 a.m. on a project more than 300 feet from an occupied residential unit (E and Note 1); loading and unloading that sends prohibited noise across a residential boundary is banned from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. (G); and siren tests must fall between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., full-system tests between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. no more than monthly (I). The Development Code adds its own (19.10.13 F): the residential table runs day 7:00 am to 9:00 pm and night 9:00 pm to 7:00 am, while industrial and commercial receivers switch at 5:00 am and 8:00 pm; lawn care devices and power tools may not run before 6:00 a.m. or after 7:00 p.m. or sunset, whichever is later (Public Works and Parks employees excepted); golf-course equipment may run from sunrise or 6:00 a.m., whichever is earlier, until sunset; construction is listed at 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from October 1 to March 31 and 5:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from April 1 to September 30 unless the Building Official approves otherwise under 8.84.030 E; truck or rail loading areas established after October 6, 1998 within 250 feet of a residential district may not operate from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. unless fully enclosed; and emergency generators may be tested only from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., for no more than 30 minutes.

Decibel limits

Chapter 8.84 itself contains no decibel figure. Its general prohibition is a reasonableness test, and Ord. No. 4101 (September 2, 2025) added as its sixth factor "Whether the maximum sound pressure level complies with HMC Title 15.33 and HMC Title 19" (8.84.020 B.6). The numbers are in the Development Code, Sec. 19.10.13 F.1, which requires all uses and activities to comply with Chapter 8.84 and caps the maximum sound pressure level radiated by any use or facility at Table 19.10.13-1 (dBA, outdoors). Residential property or the residential part of a multi-use property: 65 dBA from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm (background Leq14 62-64), 60 dBA from 9:00 pm to 7:00 am (background Leq10 53-59), and an L10 of 70 over 24 hours, "Not to exceed greater than 15 min. in a 24-hour period" (background L90 60). Industrial: 73 dBA from 5:00 am to 8:00 pm and 73 dBA from 8:00 pm to 5:00 am, L10 73 over 24 hours. Commercial: 75 dBA from 5:00 am to 8:00 pm, 73 dBA from 8:00 pm to 5:00 am, L10 77 over 24 hours. The level is measured at the lot line of the property on which the sound is generated, with an ANSI S1.4 (1983) Type S2A meter or dosimeter on A weighting and slow response (19.10.13 F.1.a–b). Exempt from the table: normal operation of maintained residential mechanical equipment such as air conditioning, pool pumps and pool heaters; golf-course maintenance equipment; emergency generators within their testing limits; emergency work; aircraft and trains; and activities under a permit issued under 19.10.13 or Chapter 8.84. Refuse collection and compactors inside or within 500 feet of a residential use may not exceed the table at 50 feet from the equipment (F.2.b), and outdoor paging systems are not allowed within 1,000 feet of the listed districts and uses (F.2.a). Blasting airblast is capped at 120 dBL at any building, or 133 dBL with written permission of all building owners within the distance shown in Figure 2 (15.33.130 E). Without a meter, a radio, stereo, instrument or amplifier is a per se violation if it is plainly audible to someone other than the player or willing listeners and unreasonably disturbs that person's peace (8.84.030 A.1), or if it is plainly audible at 50 feet from a vehicle on a public right-of-way or public space (A.2).

What the ordinance actually says

Sec. 8.84.020 A: "No person shall make, continue, or cause to be made or continued: 1. Any unreasonably loud or raucous noise; 2. Any noise which unreasonably disturbs, injures, or endangers the comfort, repose, health, peace or safety of persons of ordinary sensitivity, within the jurisdictional limits of the city; or 3. Any noise which is so harsh, prolonged, unnatural or unusual in time or place as to occasion unreasonable discomfort to any persons of ordinary sensitivity within the neighborhood from which such noise emanates, or as to unreasonably interfere with the peace and comfort of neighbors or their guests, or operators or customers in places of business, or as to unreasonably and adversely affect such residences or places of business."

Sec. 8.84.020 B.6: "Whether the maximum sound pressure level complies with HMC Title 15.33 and HMC Title 19."

Sec. 8.84.030 A.1–2: "That is plainly audible to any person (in addition to or other than the player(s) or operator(s) of the device and/or those who are voluntarily choosing to listen to the sound) and which unreasonably disturbs his peace, quiet and comfort." "In such a manner as to be plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from such set or device when operated in or on a motor vehicle on a public right-of-way or public space;"

Sec. 8.84.030 B: "The unreasonably loud and raucous use or operation of a loudspeaker, amplifier, public address system, or other device for producing or reproducing sound between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. on weekdays, and 10:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. on weekends and holidays in the following areas:"

Sec. 8.84.030 E, Note 1: "During the period beginning on April 1 and ending on September 30 construction work may commence at 5:00 a.m. on any project that is more than 300 feet from an occupied residential unit."

Sec. 19.10.13 F.1 (Development Code): "General. All uses and activities shall comply with HMC Chapter 8.84 and the maximum sound pressure level radiated by any use or facilities shall not exceed the values established in Table 19.10.13-1, Maximum Sound Pressure Levels." Table 19.10.13-1, residential receiving property: "7:00 am to 9:00 pm (Leq14) 62-64 65-Daytime"; "9:00 pm to 7:00 am (Leq10) 53-59 60-Nighttime". F.1.a: "Measurement Point. The sound level shall be measured at the lot line of the property on which the sound is generated."

Sec. 8.84.050: "A violation of any provision of this chapter shall be a misdemeanor."

Quoted verbatim from the official codified text (Henderson Municipal Code, Title 8 "Public Peace and Safety," Chapter 8.84 "Noise Control": 8.84.010 legislative purpose (Ord. 2384, 2005), 8.84.020 general prohibition (Ord. No. 4101, § 1, 9-2-2025; Ord. 2384), 8.84.030 specific prohibitions (Ord. No. 4101, § 2, 9-2-2025; Ord. No. 3110, 1-7-2014; Ord. 2384; Ord. 2096, 2002), 8.84.040 exemptions (Ord. No. 4101, § 3, 9-2-2025; Ord. No. 3110), 8.84.050 penalty (Ord. No. 3110 and earlier); 1.05.020 general misdemeanor penalty; 7.08.030 animal noise (Ord. No. 4115, § 2, 10-21-2025); 15.33.130 E blasting airblast limit. Municode edition: Supplement 59, codified through Ord. No. 4163 adopted June 16, 2026; the later ordinances in Municode's ordinance bank (Nos. 4164–4171) do not amend Chapter 8.84. Title 19, the Henderson Development Code, is adopted by reference (HMC 19.01) and published by the City on enCodePlus: 19.10.13 F "Noise" and Table 19.10.13-1, Maximum Sound Pressure Levels (Ord. 4010, 3-8-2024; Ord. 4050, 12-17-2024, effective 12-20-2024; the portal's section histories show Ord. 4171 (effective 8-21-2026) amending other Chapter 19.10 sections but not 19.10.13). Text read on Municode (the City's code host) and on the City's enCodePlus Development Code portal on 2026-10-01.). Verified against the live code on 2026-10-01. 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 Henderson

Per cityofhenderson.com, Police Department "9-1-1/Communications Center" page: call 9-1-1 for a life-threatening emergency, and "For all non-life threatening or non-recent activity please call 3-1-1 or 702-267-5000 (select option 2) for assistance." The City's "Contact Us" page names Contact Henderson as its official service-request portal for non-emergency requests (animal noise complaints are one of its listed examples) and lists Police at 702-267-5000, Code Enforcement at 702-267-3950 and Animal Protection Services at 702-267-4970. For barking dogs, the Animal Protection Services "Animal Noise" page says to file through Contact Henderson; an officer may visit or a letter goes to the owner, a second complaint brings the complainant a packet with a barking dog log, a criminal complaint form and a witness statement, and voluntary mediation is offered through the Clark County Neighborhood Mediation Center at 702-455-3898. For a short-term vacation rental, the City's 24/7 Short-Term Vacation Rental Complaint Hotline is 702-267-3960. In a residential district, building work between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. needs the building official's permission, apart from the April-to-September 5:00 a.m. start for projects more than 300 feet from an occupied residential unit (8.84.030 E). Any violation of Chapter 8.84 is a misdemeanor (8.84.050), punishable under the general penalty by up to six months in the Henderson Detention Center and/or a fine of up to $1,000, or community service in lieu (1.05.020).

Step by step, with what to log and what to expect after you file: how to file a noise complaint in Henderson. 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) The chapter was amended on September 2, 2025 (Ord. No. 4101): the general prohibition gained a sixth factor tying it to the maximum sound pressure levels in Title 15.33 (blasting) and Title 19 (the Development Code), so the decibel table, which applies to uses and facilities, now also feeds the nuisance test. (2) The Development Code table is organized by the receiving land use but is measured at the lot line of the property where the sound is generated, and its residential night begins at 9:00 p.m., an hour before the 10:00 p.m. start of the loudspeaker rule in 8.84.030 B. (3) The two construction clocks differ: 8.84.030 E allows 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. in residential districts and the April-to-September 5 a.m. start only for projects more than 300 feet from an occupied home, while 19.10.13 F.4 lists 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. from April 1 to September 30 with no distance condition; 8.84.030 E, as written, applies to residential districts. (4) Weekend and holiday mornings are protected until 10 a.m., but only from amplified sound that is "unreasonably loud and raucous" in the listed areas. (5) Alarms: an exterior or vehicle burglar alarm must cut off within 15 minutes, and more than two activations in a calendar month, "even if false or accidental," is itself a violation (8.84.030 I.3); subsection I.2(b) refers to a time limit in "subsection (J)(2)(a)," which does not exist (the 60-second limit is in I.2(a)). (6) The normal operation of maintained residential mechanical equipment, such as heating and air conditioning, pool pumps and pool heaters, is exempt from the decibel table (Table 19.10.13-1, Note 1). (7) Holders of special event or parade/public assembly permits who stay within their conditions, and permitted fireworks displays, are exempt from the whole chapter (8.84.040). (8) Lawn equipment may run until 7 p.m. or sunset, whichever is later, so the summer cut-off is later than 7 p.m. (19.10.13 F.3). (9) Barking has its own section, 7.08.030, in its current form from Ord. No. 4115 (October 21, 2025), which weighs the time of day, intensity, duration, recurrence, provocation and proximity of the noise, and the City's Animal Noise page warns that a criminal case needs the complainant to give their information and possibly appear in court. (10) Title 19 is not reproduced in the Municode edition, which carries only the adoption clause (19.01) and a link to the City's site; the operative text is the City's enCodePlus Development Code.

Document it before you report it

Henderson's limits are measured numbers, so a reading is direct evidence of how loud it really is. 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 Henderson noise map. For time-stamped measurement history you can show a landlord or code officer, the app keeps a log.