Update Noise Ordinance - YES

I voted to update Corte Madera's outdated Noise Ordinance—the law governing excessive or offensive noise—in order to make it more enforceable. Whereas the previous version of the ordinance was somewhat vague in its definition of violations and therefore difficult to enforce consistently and fairly, the new Noise Ordinance is specific and prescriptive in explaining what constitutes a violation and how noise is to be measured consistently.

In my view, there were two main policy changes beyond making the ordinance more enforceable. The first was the banning of gas-powered leaf blowers, effective in March of 2020. This policy benefits residents in two ways: by reducing a particularly prevalent and egregious source of noise, and by reducing carbon emissions within town. Second, violations of the Noise Ordinance have been downgraded from a misdemeanor to an infraction. I was proud to vote for a local ordinance that incorporated a bit of common-sense criminal justice reform.