Connecticut General Statutes 14-80a – Maximum noise levels. Regulations
(a) No person shall operate a vehicle or combination of vehicles, nor shall the owner of any vehicle allow the vehicle to be operated, at any time or under any condition of grade, surface, speed, load, acceleration, deceleration or weather condition in such a manner as to exceed the decibel levels established under subsection (c) of this section. This subsection applies to the total noise generated by a vehicle and shall not be construed as limiting or precluding the enforcement of any other motor vehicle noise provisions of this title.
Terms Used In Connecticut General Statutes 14-80a
- Commissioner: includes the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles and any assistant to the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles who is designated and authorized by, and who is acting for, the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles under a designation. See Connecticut General Statutes 14-1
- Motor vehicle: means any vehicle propelled or drawn by any nonmuscular power, except aircraft, motor boats, road rollers, baggage trucks used about railroad stations or other mass transit facilities, electric battery-operated wheel chairs when operated by persons with physical disabilities at speeds not exceeding fifteen miles per hour, golf carts operated on highways solely for the purpose of crossing from one part of the golf course to another, golf-cart-type vehicles operated on roads or highways on the grounds of state institutions by state employees, agricultural tractors, farm implements, such vehicles as run only on rails or tracks, self-propelled snow plows, snow blowers and lawn mowers, when used for the purposes for which they were designed and operated at speeds not exceeding four miles per hour, whether or not the operator rides on or walks behind such equipment, motor-driven cycles, as defined in §. See Connecticut General Statutes 14-1
- Owner: means any person holding title to a motor vehicle, or having the legal right to register the same, including purchasers under conditional bills of sale. See Connecticut General Statutes 14-1
- Person: includes any individual, corporation, limited liability company, association, copartnership, company, firm, business trust or other aggregation of individuals but does not include the state or any political subdivision thereof, unless the context clearly states or requires. See Connecticut General Statutes 14-1
- Vehicle: includes any device suitable for the conveyance, drawing or other transportation of persons or property, whether operated on wheels, runners, a cushion of air or by any other means. See Connecticut General Statutes 14-1
(b) No person shall sell or offer for sale a new vehicle which produces a maximum decibel level which exceeds the decibel levels established under subsection (c) of this section.
(c) The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles shall, with the advice of the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection, adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, establishing (1) the maximum decibel levels permissible for motor vehicles, which shall not exceed the maximum decibel levels established for motor vehicles by federal law or regulation, and (2) the procedure for testing maximum decibel levels. The commissioner shall amend such regulations to reflect industry standards and advancements in technology and shall submit the amended regulations to the standing legislative regulation review committee under § 4-170 not later than January 1, 2024.
(d) Violation of the provisions of this section shall be an infraction.