Chapter 8.12
ALARMS RESPONDED TO BY THE POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENTS
Sections:
8.12.030 Emergency response card required.
8.12.040 Proper alarm systems operation and maintenance.
8.12.050 Monitoring procedures.
8.12.060 Alarm system operating instructions.
8.12.070 Alarm dispatch request records.
8.12.090 Appeal from fines and penalties.
8.12.010 Purpose.
A. The purpose of this chapter is to encourage alarm users to maintain the operational reliability and to properly use alarm systems and to reduce or eliminate false alarm dispatch requests.
B. This chapter governs systems intended to summon emergency response, establishes fees, provides for penalties for violations and establishes a system of administration. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.020 Definitions.
A. “Alarm administrator” means a person designated by the police chief and/or fire chief to review emergency response cards, alarm dispatch requests, respond to inquiries, and schedule and conduct alarm fine appeal hearings.
B. “Alarm business” means the business, by an individual, partnership, corporation or other entity, of selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving, installing or monitoring an alarm system.
C. “Alarm dispatch request” means a notification to the dispatch center by the alarm business that an alarm, either manual or automatic, has been activated at a particular alarm site.
D. “Alarm hearing examiner” shall be appointed by the chief to rule on alarm fine appeals.
E. “Alarm site” means a single premises or location served by an alarm system or systems.
F. “Alarm system” means a device or series of devices including, but not limited to, systems interconnected with radio frequency signals, which are designed to discourage crime, report fires or water flow from fire sprinklers by emitting or transmitting a remote or local audible, visual or electronic signal indicating an alarm condition. “Alarm system” does not include:
1. An alarm installed on a vehicle unless the vehicle is permanently located at a site; or
2. An alarm designed to alert only the inhabitants of a premises that does not have a sounding device that can be heard on the exterior of the alarm site.
G. “Alarm user” means any person or entity using an alarm system at its alarm site.
H. “Chief” means the police chief or an authorized representative.
I. “Duress alarm” means a silent alarm signal generated by the manual activation of a device intended to signal a crisis situation requiring police/fire response.
J. “False alarm dispatch” means an alarm dispatch request to the police and/or fire departments when the responding officer/firefighter who, after completing a timely investigation of the alarm site, finds no evidence of a criminal or attempted criminal offense or risk from fire, heat, water or smoke. An alarm dispatch request that is canceled by the alarm business or the alarm user prior to the time the responding officer reaches the alarm site shall not be considered a false alarm dispatch.
K. “Holdup alarm” means a silent alarm signal generated by the manual activation of a device intended to signal a robbery in progress.
L. “Keypad” means a device that allows control of an alarm system by the manual entering of a coded sequence of numbers or letters.
M. “Monitoring” means the process by which an alarm business receives signals from alarm systems and relays an alarm dispatch request to the city for the purpose of summoning police or fire response to the alarm site.
N. “One plus duress alarm” means the manual activation of a silent alarm signal by entering at a keypad a code that adds one to the last digit of the normal arm/disarm code (normal code – 1234, one plus duress code – 1235).
O. “Person” means an individual, corporation, partnership, association, organization or similar entity.
P. “Six-month period” is computed as follows: A response at which no other false alarm has occurred within the preceding six months is referred to as “first response.” A “second response” occurs within six months of the “first response.” A “third response” occurs within six months of the “second response.” A “fourth response” occurs within six months of the “third response” and so on.
Q. “Verify” means an attempt, by the alarm business, or its representative, to contact the alarm site by telephonic or other electronic means, whether or not actual contact with a person is made, before requesting a police dispatch, in an attempt to avoid an unnecessary alarm dispatch request. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.030 Emergency response card required.
A. No alarm user shall operate, or cause to be operated, an alarm system at its alarm site without an emergency response card on file with the alarm administrator. A separate card is required for each alarm site.
B. Each emergency response card must include the following information:
1. The names, address, and telephone numbers of the person who will be responsible for the proper maintenance and operation of the alarm system.
2. For each alarm system located at the alarm site, the purpose of the alarm system, i.e., burglary, holdup, duress, fire or other.
3. The names, address, and phone number of the alarm business monitoring the alarm system if different from the installing alarm business.
4. Whether the alarm site is equipped or non-equipped for duress alarm.
C. All employees or representatives of the town shall hold the information contained in an emergency response card in confidence. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.040 Proper alarm systems operation and maintenance.
A. An alarm user shall:
1. Maintain the premises and the alarm system in a manner that will minimize or eliminate false alarm dispatches; and
2. Make every reasonable effort to respond or cause a representative to respond to the alarm system’s location within one hour when notified by the city to deactivate a malfunctioning alarm system, to provide access to the premises, or to provide security for the premises; and
3. Not manually activate an alarm for any reason other than an occurrence of an event that the alarm system was intended to report; and
4. Make every reasonable effort to ensure that the alarm will not be activated due to transient pressure changes, electrical power surges or failures, short flashes of light, normal room temperature changes, wind noises, rattling or vibrating doors or windows, vehicular noises, or other causes unrelated to genuine signals; and
5. Notify any workers on the premises of the existence of an alarm system and/or take precautions so they will not activate the alarm; and
6. Notify the police department dispatch prior to and after having work done on the alarm system.
B. An alarm user shall adjust the mechanism or cause the mechanism to be adjusted so that an alarm signal audible on the exterior of an alarm site will sound for no longer than 15 minutes after being activated.
C. An alarm user shall have a properly licensed alarm business inspect the user’s alarm system after two false alarm dispatches in a six-month period, and shall provide documentation of that inspection to the department. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.050 Monitoring procedures.
An alarm business performing monitoring services shall:
A. Not request dispatch for police/fire personnel response during the first week after installation of an alarm system, except in extenuating circumstances which necessitate immediate requests for response;
B. Attempt to verify every alarm signal, except a duress or holdup alarm activation, before requesting a police/fire response to an alarm signal;
C. Ensure that all alarm users of alarm systems equipped with duress alarm are given adequate training as to the proper use of the duress alarm. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.060 Alarm system operating instructions.
An alarm user shall maintain a set of written operating instructions for each alarm system at each alarm site. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.070 Alarm dispatch request records.
A. The police officer/firefighter responding to an alarm dispatch request shall record such information as necessary to permit the alarm administrator to maintain records.
B. The responding police officer/firefighter shall indicate on the dispatch record whether the dispatch was caused by a criminal or attempted criminal offense, or risk from fire, heat, water or smoke, or was a false alarm dispatch.
C. In the case of an assumed false alarm dispatch, the responding police officer/firefighter shall leave notice at the alarm site that the police and/or fire department has responded to a false alarm dispatch. If there is reason to believe that an alarm system is not being used or maintained in a manner that ensures proper operation and suppresses false alarms, the alarm administrator may require a conference with an alarm user and the alarm business responsible for the repair of the alarm system to review the circumstances of each false alarm. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.080 Fines and penalties.
A. An alarm user shall be subject to fines, warnings and penalties depending on the number of false alarm dispatches emitted from an alarm system within a six-month period based upon the following schedule:
|
Number of False Alarm Dispatches |
Action Taken |
Fines |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
On-Site Written Notice and Warning Letter No. 1 |
0 |
|
2 |
On-Site Written Notice and Notice of Fine |
$50.00 |
|
3 |
On-Site Written Notice and Notice of Fine |
$75.00 |
|
4 or more |
On-Site Written Notice and Notice of Fine |
$100.00 |
B. A fine may be imposed on the first false alarm when such alarm is proven to have been caused by negligence or failure to use due care, i.e., failure to bag the alarm during construction. This section refers specifically to construction sites, including but not limited to new and/or remodel.
C. Alarm dispatch requests caused by actual criminal offense or with evidence of a criminal attempt, or risk from fire, heat, water or smoke, shall not be counted as a false alarm dispatch.
D. Any false alarms resulting from a failure to take the necessary corrective action to prevent reoccurrence and/or nonpayment of any false alarm fine assessment may result in the alarm administrator providing a written notice ordering disconnection of such alarm until such corrective action or payment of fine assessment is made. The department will not respond to any alarm at this site unless it is a human-activated panic, medical or holdup alarm. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.090 Appeal from fines and penalties.
A. An alarm user may appeal assessment of a fine to the alarm administrator by filing a written request for hearing setting forth the reasons for the appeal within 10 days after receipt of notice of fine. The filing of a request for an appeal hearing with the alarm hearing examiner stays the assessment of the fine until the alarm hearing examiner makes a final decision.
B. The alarm administrator shall conduct a formal hearing with the alarm hearing examiner and appellant to consider the evidence by any interested person(s). The alarm hearing examiner shall make his decision on the basis of the preponderance of evidence presented at the hearing including, but not limited to, that an alarm dispatch request was caused by a criminal offense. The alarm hearing examiner shall affirm, reverse or modify the assessment of the fine. The decision of the alarm hearing examiner is final as to administrative remedies with the town.
C. The alarm administrator and alarm hearing examiner may waive the formal hearing and imposition of the fine if the alarm user submits written evidence that a false alarm dispatch was caused by a defective part that has been repaired or replaced. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)
8.12.100 Exceptions.
This chapter shall not apply to the police chief or fire chief, members of the police and/or fire departments, or other persons duly authorized to activate an alarm when such may be deemed proper. (Ord. 602 § 1, 2009)