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Will County committee backs buying calibrated decibel meters to support noise enforcement
Summary
Sheriff's office staff told the committee that modern, certified decibel meters (about $450'$650 each) are necessary to measure ordinance violations reliably; members urged testing a few models and asked the sheriff to include devices in the upcoming budget so the county can enforce noise rules this summer.
The Will County ordinance-review committee pressed the sheriff's office on how to strengthen enforcement of local noise complaints and signaled support for purchasing calibrated decibel meters for use in ordinance hearings.
"We used to have decibel meters at the sheriff's office," said the agency representative, explaining that older meters were assigned to the evidence division and often unavailable when deputies responded. The sheriff's office recommended buying certified meters that can be calibrated before and after use so readings will hold up in ordinance hearings and administrative proceedings. Staff estimated a reliable, certifiable device costs about $450 to $650 each.
Committee members raised practical concerns: how close a deputy must be to the noise source (the ordinance references a 150-foot guideline), whether lighting or vehicle arrival would change behavior, and whether phones or consumer apps are acceptable. The sheriff's representative said phone apps are not certified and "could be way off," stressing the need for instruments packaged with protective cases and calibration tools.
Members discussed scale and timing. The sheriff's office sketched a deployment scenario with multiple zones and suggested two meters per zone as a starting point; that could amount to roughly 20 meters countywide at an estimated $10,000 total. Several members urged purchasing a small number for pilot testing this summer and to include funding requests in the sheriff's budget.
The committee did not adopt a formal procurement at the meeting but asked staff to test models and include a proposal during budget discussions so equipment could be acquired ahead of peak complaint months.
The committee moved on to the next agenda item after the sheriff's staff said they would research vendors and calibration procedures and return with cost and implementation details.
