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HomeMy WebLinkAboutO-1335ORDINANCE NO. 1335 FALSE ALARM ORDINANCE AN ORDINANCE TO PROMOTE THE PUBLIC SAFETY, HEALTH AND WELFARE OF THE CITY OF FAIRHOPE, ALABAMA, BY ADOPTING A FALSE ALARM ORDINANCE AND REPEALING ORDINANCE NO. 1267 — REGULATION OF BURGLAR ALARM SYSTEMS. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FAIRHOPE, ALABAMA, as follows: SECTION 1. PURPOSE (A.) The purpose of this Ordinance is to encourage Alarm Users and alarm companies to properly use and maintain the operational effectiveness of Alarm Systems in order to improve the reliability of Alarm Systems and reduce or eliminate False Alarms. (B.) This Ordinance governs Alarm Systems intended to summon law enforcement and/or fire department response, sets conditions for suspension of police and/or fire department response and sets fines for repeated false alarms. SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS In this Ordinance the following terms and phrases shall have the following meanings: (A.) Alarm Installation Company means a Person in the business of selling, providing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving or installing an Alarm System in an Alarm Site. (B.) Alarm Dispatch Request means a notification to the Fairhope Police Communications Center that an alarm, either manual or automatic, has been activated at a particular Alarm Site. (C.) Alarm Site means a single fixed premises or location served by an Alarm System or Systems. Each unit, if served by a separate Alarm System in a multi -unit building or complex, shall be considered a separate Alarm Site. (D.) Alarm System means a device or series of devices, including, but not limited to, hardwired systems and systems interconnected with a radio frequency method such as cellular or private radio signals, which emit or transmit a remote or local audible, visual or electronic signal indicating an alarm condition and intended to summon law enforcement and/or fire department response, including Local Alarm Systems. Alarm System does not include an alarm installed in a vehicle or on someone's Person unless the vehicle or the personal alarm is permanently located at a site. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —2- (E.) Alarm User means any Person, who (which) has contracted for Monitoring, repair, installation or maintenance service from an Alarm Installation Company or Monitoring Company for an Alarm System, or who (which) owns or operates an Alarm System, which is not monitored, maintained or repaired under contract. (F.) Arming Station means a device that allows control of an Alarm System. (G.) Automatic Voice Dialer means any electrical, electronic, mechanical, or other device capable of being programmed to send a prerecorded voice message, when activated, over a telephone line, radio or other communication system, to a law enforcement, public safety or emergency services agency requesting dispatch. (H.) Cancellation means the process where response is terminated when a Monitoring Company (designated by the Alarm User) for the Alarm Site notifies the Police Department that there is not an existing situation at the Alarm Site requiring law enforcement and/or fire department response after an Alarm Dispatch Request. (I.) City Officials means police or fire department personal that response to an alarm call. (J.) Conversion means the transaction or process by which one Alarm Installation Company or Monitoring Company begins the servicing and/or Monitoring of a previously unmonitored Alarm System or an Alarm System previously serviced and/or monitored by another alarm company. (K.) Duress Alarm means a silent Alarm System signal generated by the entry of a designated code into an Arming Station in order to signal that the Alarm User is being forced to turn off the system and requires law enforcement response. (L.) False Alarm means an Alarm Dispatch Request to the Fairhope Police Department and/or Fire Department, when the responding City officials finds no evidence of a criminal offense, attempted criminal offense or fire after having completed a timely investigation of the Alarm Site. (M.) Fire Department means the Fairhope Volunteer Fire Department (N.) Holdup Alarm means a silent alarm signal generated by the manual activation of a device intended to signal a robbery in progress. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —3- (O.) Law Enforcement Authority means the City of Fairhope Police Department. (P.) License means a license issued by the City of Fairhope to an Alarm Installation Company and Monitoring Company to sell, install, monitor, repair, or replace Alarm Systems. (Q.) Local Alarm System means any Alarm System, which is not monitored, that annunciates an alarm only at the Alarm Site. (R.) Monitoring means the process by which a Monitoring Company receives signals from an Alarm System and relays an Alarm Dispatch Request to the Municipality for the purpose of summoning law enforcement to the Alarm Site. (S.) Monitoring Company means a Person in the business of providing Monitoring services. (T.) Panic Alarm means an audible Alarm System signal generated by the manual activation of a device intended to signal a life threatening or emergency situation requiring law enforcement response. (U.) Person means an individual, corporation, partnership, association, organization or similar entity. (V.) Responder means an individual capable of reaching the Alarm Site within fifteen (15) minutes and having access to the Alarm Site, the code to the Alarm System and the authority to approve repairs to the Alarm System. (W.) Takeover means the transaction or process by which an Alarm User takes over control of an existing Alarm System, which was previously controlled by another Alarm User. (X.) Verify means an attempt by the Monitoring Company, or its representative, to contact the Alarm Site by telephonic or other electronic means, whether or not actual contact with a Person is made, to determine whether an alarm signal is valid before requesting law enforcement dispatch, in an attempt to avoid an unnecessary Alarm Dispatch Request. (Y.) Zones mean division of devices into which an Alarm System is divided to indicate the general location from which an Alarm System signal is transmitted. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —4- SECTION 3. DUTIES OF ALARM USER (A.) An Alarm User shall: (1) maintain the Alarm Site and the Alarm System in a manner that will minimize or eliminate False Alarms; (2) make every reasonable effort to have a Responder to the Alarm System's location within fifteen (15) minutes when requested by the City Officials in order to: a. deactivate an Alarm System; b. provide access to the Alarm Site; and/or provide alternative security for the Alarm Site. (3) not activate an Alarm System for any reason other than an occurrence of an event that the Alarm System was intended to report. (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 ten (10) minutes after being activated. (C.) An Alarm User shall have a Licensed Alarm Installation Company inspect the Alarm System after two (2) False Alarms in a one (1) year period. The Chief of Police may waive a required inspection if it determines that a False Alarm(s) could not have been related to a defect or malfunction in the Alarm System. After four (4) False Alarms within a one (1) year period, the Alarm User must have a Licensed Alarm Installation Company modify the Alarm System to be more false alarm resistant or provide additional user training as appropriate. [See Appendix A for Installers False Alarm Prevention Checklist] (D.) An Alarm User shall not use Automatic Voice Dialers. (E.) An Alarm User shall maintain at each Alarm Site, a set of written operating instructions for each Alarm System. SECTION 4. DUTIES OF ALARM INSTALLATION COMPANIES (A.) The Alarm Installation Company shall provide written and oral instructions to each of its Alarm Users in the proper use and operation of their Alarm Systems. Such instructions will specifically include all instructions necessary to turn the Alarm System on and off and how to avoid False Alarms. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —5- (B.) Ninety (90) days after enactment of this Ordinance, and conditioned upon reasonable availability, the Alarm Installation Companies shall, on new installations, use only alarm control panel(s) which meet SIA Control Panel Standard CP-01. (C.) After completion of the installation of an Alarm System, an Alarm Installation Company employee shall review with the Alarm User the Customer False Alarm Prevention Checklist (Appendix B) or an equivalent checklist approved by the Chief of Police. SECTION 5. DUTIES OF MONITORING COMPANIES (A.) The Monitoring Company shall not make an Alarm Dispatch Request to the Fairhope Police Communications Center in response to an alarm signal, excluding Fire, Panic, Duress and Holdup signals, during the first seven (7.) days following an Alarm System installation. The Chief of Police may grant an Alarm User's request for an exemption from this waiting period based upon a determination that special circumstances substantiate the need for the exemption. (B.) A Monitoring Company shall: (1) Attempt to verify every alarm signal, except a Fire, Panic, Duress or Holdup Alarm activation before requesting an Alarm Dispatch Request to an Alarm System signal; (2) Communicate Alarm Dispatch Requests to the City of Fairhope in a manner and form determined by the Chief of Police; (3) Communicate Cancellations to the City of Fairhope in a manner and form determined by the Chief of Police; (4) Ensure that all Alarm Users of Alarm Systems equipped with a Duress, Holdup or Panic Alarm are given adequate training as to the proper use of the Duress, Holdup or Panic Alarm; (5) Communicate any available information (north, south, front, back, floor, etc.) about the location on all alarm signals related to the Alarm Dispatch Request; (6) Communicate type of alarm activation (silent or audible, interior or perimeter); Ordinance No. 1335 Page —6- (7) After an Alarm Dispatch Request, promptly advise the City Officials if the Monitoring Company knows that the Alarm User or the Responder is on the way to the Alarm Site; (8) Attempt to contact the Alarm User or Responder within 24 hours via mail, fax, telephone or other electronic means when an Alarm Dispatch Request is made. (C.) An alarm Monitoring Company shall not use Automatic Voice Dialers. (D.) Upon the effective date of this Ordinance, Monitoring Companies must maintain for a period of at least one (1) year from the date of the Alarm Dispatch Request, records relating to Alarm Dispatch Requests. Records must include the name, address and telephone number of the Alarm User, the Alarm System Zone(s) activated, the time of Alarm Dispatch Request and evidence of an attempt to Verify. The Chief of Police may request copies of such records for individually named Alarm Users. If the request is made within sixty (60) days of an Alarm Dispatch Request, the Monitoring Company shall furnish requested records within three (3) business days of receiving the request. If the records are requested between sixty (60) days to one (1) year after an Alarm Dispatch Request, the Monitoring Company shall furnish the requested records within thirty (30) days of receiving the request. (E.) An Alarm Installation Company and/or Monitoring Company that purchases Alarm System accounts from another Person shall notify the Chief of Police of such purchase and provide details as may be reasonably requested by the Chief of Police. SECTION 6. LICENSE OR LICENSING (A.) All Alarm Installation Companies and Monitoring Companies shall maintain a Business License issued by the City of Fairhope. SECTION 7. DUTIES AND AUTHORITY OF THE CHIEF OF POLICE (A.) The Chief of Police shall: (1) Designate a manner, form and telephone numbers for the communication of Alarm Dispatch Requests; and (2) Establish a procedure to accept Cancellation of Alarm Dispatch Requests. (B.) The Chief of Police shall establish a procedure to collect information on Alarm Dispatch Requests necessary to enforce this Ordinance. (C.) The information to be collected shall include, but is not limited to: Ordinance No. 1335 Page —7- (1) Identification of the Alarm Site; (2) Date and time the Alarm Dispatch Request was received; (3) The name of the Monitoring Company and the Monitoring Company operator name or number making the Alarm Dispatch Request; (4) The Zone and Zone description activating the Alarm System, if available; (5) Date and time the law enforcement officer or fire department first responder arrived on scene; (6) Weather conditions; (7) Name of Alarm User's representative at Alarm Site, if any; (8) Identification of the responsible Alarm Installation Company or Monitoring Company; (9) Whether City Officials were unable to locate the address of the Alarm Site; and (10) Cause of alarm signal, if known. (D.) The Chief of Police shall establish a procedure for the notification to the Alarm User of a False Alarm. The notice shall include the following information: (1) Date and time the Alarm Dispatch Request was received; (2) Date and time the law enforcement officer or fire department first responder arrived on scene; (3) Cause of alarm signal, if known; (4) Specific provisions of this Ordinance relating to the Duties of Alarm Users and Penalties for violation. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —8- (E.) The Chief of Police may require a conference with an Alarm User and the Alarm Installation Company and/or Monitoring Company responsible for the repair or monitoring of the Alarm System to review the circumstances of a False Alarm. (F.) The Chief of Police shall establish a procedure for the issuance of fines under this Ordinance. SECTION 8. FINES (A.) An Alarm User shall be in violation of this Ordinance if, during any twelve (12) month period, an Alarm System owned or operated by the User causes an alarm signal that is determined to be a False Alarm. (B.) An Alarm User shall be subject to fines, depending on the number of False Alarms within a 12-month period based upon the following schedule: # Of False Alarms Fine 2 $25.00 $50.00 4 $75.00 5 or more $100.00 (C.) The Alarm Installation Company shall be in violation of this Ordinance and assessed a fine of $100.00 if the officer responding to the False Alarm determines- that an on -site employee of the Alarm Installation Company directly caused the False Alarm. In this situation, the False Alarm will not be counted against the Alarm User. (D.) The Alarm Installation Company shall be assessed a fine of $200.00 if the Chief of Police determines that an Alarm Installation Company employee knowingly made a false statement concerning the inspection of an Alarm Site or the performance of an Alarm System. (E.) The Monitoring Company shall be in violation of this Ordinance and assessed a fine of $100.00 for each failure to Verify Alarm System signals as specified in Section 5(B)(1). (F.) For any alleged violation of this Ordinance, the Chief of Police, or his or her designee, shall file a Complaint in the Municipal Court of the City of Fairhope. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —9 - SECTION 9. SUSPENSION OF RESPONSE (A.) The Chief of Police may suspend law enforcement response to an Alarm Site if it is determined that: (1) The Alarm User has more than five (5) False Alarms in a twelve (12) month period excluding Duress, Holdup or Panic Alarms; (2) The Alarm User has failed to make timely payment of a fine assessed under Section 8 of this Ordinance. (B.) The Chief of Police will notify the Alarm User and the Alarm Installation Company or Monitoring Company in writing at least five (5) days prior to the suspension of alarm response. (1) This notice of suspension will also include the amount of the fine for each False Alarm and a description of the appeals procedure available to the Alarm User and the Alarm Installation Company or Monitoring Company. (2) Suspension of response shall NOT include Duress, Panic, Holdup or Fire alarms. SECTION 10. CONFIDENTIALITY (A.) In the interest of public safety, all information contained in and gathered through this Alarm Ordinance and applications for appeals shall be held in confidence by all employees or representatives of the City of Fairhope and by any third -party administrator or employees of a third -party administrator with access to such information. SECTION 11. GOVERNMENT IMMUNITY (A.) Alarm Response is not intended to, nor will it, create a contract, duty or obligation, either expressed or implied, of response. Any and all liability and consequential damage resulting from the failure to respond to a notification is hereby disclaimed and governmental immunity as provided by law is retained. Ordinance No. 1335 Page —10- SECTION 12. SEVERABILITY (A.) The provisions of this Ordinance are severable. If a court determines that a word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, subsection, section, or other provision is invalid or that the application of any part of the provision to any Person or circumstance is invalid, the remaining provisions and the application of those provisions to other Persons or circumstances are not affected by that decision. (B.) Ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed to the extent of such conflict. (C.) This ordinance shall take effect upon its due adoption and publication as provided by law. ADOPTED THIS THE 9`" Attest: Gemece W. Johnson, CitySler DAY OF July . 2007.