Law enforcement officials in Harris County could have additional tools to address noise pollution if a new law is passed by the Legislature this session.

State Rep. Patricia Harless, R-Spring, filed House Bill 153 in November after hearing numerous complaints from constituents about music and noise in her district. In particular, noise from the Something Wicked Festival at Sam Houston Race Park in late October generated multiple concerns from nearby residents.

"The bass and the music was very loud," Harless said. "It was on a Saturday night and Sunday night until 2 in the morning. I was getting literally hundreds of calls [from] as far as Huntwick [Forest]."

Unlike the city of Houston and other municipalities, Harris County does not have the power to pass ordinances. Instead, county governments in Texas can only enforce regulations that have first been approved by the state Legislature. Therefore, the county can only rely on the state's noise ordinance to police noisy disruptions.

"It's not that you can't have noise, it's that you can't have noise above a certain decibel level," said Barbara Thomason, president of the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce. "It's no different than what the city of Houston has, and I think it's a good thing to have."

Harless said she filed a much broader nuisance bill in 2007 that included noise and loud music. However, the bill was unsuccessful.

The new legislation designates noise cannot be more than 85 decibels heard at a distance from 50 feet or more outside a property. HB 153 would affect counties with 3.3 million people or more, which only includes Harris County.

"In rural Texas where there's fewer people, you may have a concert out in a pasture that nobody hears," Harless said. "You don't want to give counties too broad an authority for what you do on your private property."

Electricity and gas utility companies are exempt from the legislation, even though large generators often make noise louder than 85 decibels. This exemption is necessary because if a company is issued a citation, turning off a generator could cut electricity, power and other utilities.

However, Harless said she is considering the addition of other exemptions, such as oil and gas companies.

Energy companies have already expressed concerns about the legislation since drilling a well for an oil or gas pipeline can also create loud noise.

"We're working through [the exemption process] and trying to see how the city of Houston does it," Harless said. "The last thing we want to do is pull someone that is providing a service to the population into unintended consequences."

The city of Houston's noise ordinance allows for 65 decibels during the day and 58 decibels at night, which Harless said she believes is too low.

"We wanted [to prevent noise] that would sustain damage [to the ears of residents]," she said. "Our intention was mainly just music and loud noise when neighbors are playing [music] over 85 decibels. Then the police could issue a citation."

If passed the legislation would also allow Harris County to issue permits for certain residents or businesses to exceed the decibel level, but Harless said she could not comment on how the permits might be implemented.

"That would be up to the county commissioners how they would do that," she said. "When we give them the authority to do ordinances, from that point on it's their judgment call."