Albuquerque Noise Ordinance: Decibel Limits, Quiet Hours, and Fines

The Albuquerque noise ordinance, found in Article 9 of the city’s Code of Ordinances, caps sound levels based on the zoning of the property hearing the noise and the time of day, restricts when construction and power equipment can run, and treats violations as civil offenses with fines starting at $250. The Environmental Health Department enforces it, and complaints go through 311 or the department directly.

Decibel Limits by Zone and Time

Section 9-9-4 sets the core numbers. Daytime runs from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and nighttime from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. The limits are measured at the receiving property, not the source:¹

Residential property receiving noise from another residential property: 55 dB(A) day, 50 dB(A) night.
Residential property receiving noise from a commercial or industrial source: 55/50 indoors, 60/55 outdoors.
Commercial property: 65 dB(A) day, 60 dB(A) night, regardless of source.
Industrial or public property: 75 dB(A) day, 70 dB(A) night.

For residential, commercial, and Downtown Arts and Entertainment Focus Area receivers, inspectors measure sound inside the structure. That means the test is how much noise reaches you through your walls and windows, not how loud it is at the fence line.¹

A separate C-weighted standard runs about 5 dB higher across every category and captures low-frequency sound like thumping bass. If a neighbor’s music registers more as vibration than volume on a standard meter, the C-weighted number is the one that matters.¹

Amplified Sound Has a Stricter Rule

Stereos, PA systems, live bands, and outdoor business loudspeakers face a separate standard. They cannot exceed the ambient noise level by more than 5 dB at any receiving noise-sensitive property. In apartment buildings, the measurement point is inside any dwelling unit or shared common area. For businesses using outdoor speakers to call employees or customers, the 5-dB-above-ambient cap applies at the property line.¹ This provision gets triggered constantly because there’s no fixed decibel number to clear; the standard moves with the background noise.

Quiet Hours for Construction and Power Equipment

Building construction, foundation work, and demolition are prohibited on Sundays, holidays, and between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. unless the contractor has pulled a temporary construction noise permit from the Environmental Health Department. Even during permitted hours, specified mitigation measures still apply.

Outdoor power equipment is handled under Section 9-9-7. Lawn mowers, leaf blowers, rototillers, and power saws cannot run within 500 feet of any noise-sensitive property between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., or between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. on Sundays and holidays. Noise-sensitive property means occupied homes, schools, hospitals, religious institutions, and care facilities. Golf course mowers are exempt.²

Air conditioners, compressors, and exhaust fans must meet the general Section 9-9-4 limits. Commercial properties cannot install mechanical equipment on any side of a building facing noise-sensitive property or separated from it only by an alley. Roof installations are allowed if they stay within the decibel caps.²

Vehicle and Animal Noise

Loud car stereos and modified exhausts fall under the nuisance code rather than Article 9. Section 7-10-3 makes it unlawful to play sound from a vehicle on a public street that is plainly audible 25 feet away, and it prohibits any exhaust alteration that makes a vehicle louder than its factory original.³ Separately, Section 9-9-9 caps passenger vehicles under 6,000 pounds at 95 dB measured 20 inches from the exhaust outlet, and heavier vehicles at 93 dB measured 25 feet from the side of the vehicle.¹

Barking dogs are covered by Section 9-2-4-7, which prohibits allowing an animal to persistently or continuously bark, howl, or make noise common to its species to the point of creating a nuisance. Depending on the circumstances, either Environmental Health or Animal Welfare may investigate.⁴

What the Ordinance Does Not Cover

A number of common noise sources are explicitly exempt, which means the city cannot act on complaints about them:⁵

Aircraft and airports
Human voices (a loud party without speakers is outside the ordinance)
Emergency or civic construction, demolition, and repair work
School bands, school athletic and entertainment events, and occasional outdoor or indoor gatherings, public dances, shows, and band performances during daytime hours
Fireworks displays
Mass transit, parades, and protests
Refuse collection between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.
Stadiums, zoos, and animal shelters
Preexisting mechanical equipment
Mosquito control activities and earthshaking vibrations

Emergency vehicle warning devices and motor vehicle horns used for traffic safety are also exempt.¹ Train horns and highway traffic noise are preempted by federal regulation, so the city has no authority there either.

Fines and How a Violation Is Processed

Noise violations are civil, not criminal. Section 9-9-11 treats each violation as a public nuisance with a tiered fine schedule tracked over a rolling 36-month period:¹

First offense: $250
Second offense: $500
Third and subsequent offenses: $1,000

Each calendar day the violation continues counts as a separate offense, so a problem left unresolved can stack fines rapidly. Penalties are assessed against the property owner, not only the person making the noise. Once the city determines a violation occurred, the Mayor’s office mails a Notice of Violation stating the offense, the fine, and the owner’s right to contest.

To challenge a notice, the property owner must request a hearing in writing within 10 days of the mailing date and pay a $50 fee to the Independent Office of Hearings. The hearing is informal, with no strict rules of evidence, and a City Hearing Officer decides whether the violation occurred. If the officer finds no violation, the fee is refunded and a Certificate of Compliance is issued. The Mayor can also seek a restraining order or court injunction to stop continuing violations.¹

How to Report a Noise Complaint

During business hours, call 311 (505-768-2000) or the Environmental Health Department directly at 505-768-2738.⁵ A useful complaint includes:⁶

A description of the noise and whether it’s continuous or intermittent
The source location
Date, time, and duration of the disturbance
How long the problem has been going on
Your contact information

An inspector may visit the site to take sound measurements or interview witnesses. If the noise exceeds the applicable limits, the city issues a Notice of Violation; for chronic problems, it can pursue an injunction through the courts.

When the Ordinance Does Not Solve It

Albuquerque’s Community Mediation Program handles neighbor disputes informally with a trained neutral mediator. Call 505-768-4500 to request mediation or learn more.⁷ Mediation doesn’t waive your right to file a formal complaint or sue later, and for a conflict with someone you’ll keep living next to, a mediated agreement tends to hold up better than a citation.

A private nuisance lawsuit is a separate track from city enforcement. To win, you generally need to show a property interest as owner or tenant, substantial interference with the use and enjoyment of your property, and that the interference is unreasonable. Courts weigh the severity and frequency of the noise, the character of the neighborhood, and the social value of the noise source. Remedies can include monetary damages and an injunction ordering the activity to stop or be reduced.

Two points often surprise people. A noise source that complies with every provision of the ordinance can still be found to be a private nuisance; staying under the decibel limits is not a shield. And a proven ordinance violation strengthens a nuisance claim but isn’t required to win one.

1
City of Albuquerque. Albuquerque Code of Ordinances – Article 9: Noise Control
2
American Legal Publishing. Albuquerque Code of Ordinances 9-9-7 – Machinery, Equipment Fans, and Air Conditioners
3
American Legal Publishing. Albuquerque Code of Ordinances 7-10-3 – Vehicle Nuisance – Specific Violations
4
American Legal Publishing. Albuquerque Code of Ordinances 9-2-4-3 – Animal Limits and Restrictions
5
City of Albuquerque. Noise
6
City of Albuquerque. Noise Permits
7
City of Albuquerque. What Is Community Mediation