27-Amend Article V Chapter 21-Noise Ordinance

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Item No. 27 memorandum TO: Mayor & Council John Godwin, City Manager FROM: Stephanie H. Harris, City Attorney SUBJECT: Amending Article V to Chapter 21 of the code of Ordinances of the City of Paris, Texas; Providing for Prohibiting Loud and Raucous Noises which are Deemed Offensive to Persons of Ordinary Sensibilities; providing for a penalty not to exceed $500.00; repealing all Ordinances or parts of Ordinances in conflict herewith; providing a severability clause; and providing for an effective date. DATE: December 5, 2016 BACKGROUND: The City's noise ordinance, which is contained in Article V to Chapter 21 of the Code of Ordinances, was adopted in 1970 and has not been amended or updated since that time. It is somewhat vague, and because of that, in my tenure in the City Attorney's office, both in the early 2000s and since 2013, I have always prosecuted violations as disorderly conduct offenses under the Texas Penal Code. This is less than ideal because the disorderly conduct statute is fairly limited in its application to unreasonable noises made in a public place or in or near a private residence the violator has no right to occupy. In this revision, a number of specific unreasonable noises (i.e., noises that are offensive to a person of ordinary sensibilities) are set forth, and there is a presumption that any noise over the decibel readings set forth in the ordinance are presumed to be unreasonable. A decibel reading is not, however, required for prosecution. The ordinance also makes specific reference to vibrations that can be felt over certain distances from the source (e.g., loud bass lines in music) since such vibrations ordinarily do not exceed the decibel levels set forth in the ordinance. STATUS OF ISSUE: An update of the City's almost 50 year old noise ordinance is far overdue. The revisions in the attached ordinance will give the public greater notice of what constitutes a noise violation and will make such violations easier to prosecute. The revisions also give the City the authority to prosecute a greater number of noise violations than is possible under the disorderly conduct statute. BUDGET: N/A RECOMMENDATION: Move to adopt the attached revised noise ordinance in Article III of Chapter 21 of the Code of Ordinances.