[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee
of the Township of Hazlet 3-16-1982 by Ord. No. 555-82 as Sec. 7-13 of the
1982 Revised General Ordinances (Ch. 105 of the 1993 Code). Amendments
noted where applicable.]
The provisions of this chapter shall apply to any person who operates, maintains or owns any alarm system situated in the Township having an audible signaling device or requiring a response by the Police Department, Fire Department or other Township agency. The terms of this chapter shall in no way prohibit alarm companies from providing service by private source to other offices within or without the Township, so long as such activity is not connected to the Township alarm console, except that any person having a premises protected by an alarm system shall nevertheless be responsible for the registration thereof in accordance with § 120-4.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The console or control panel of devices giving a visual or
audio response, or both, and located within the confines of the Township
police headquarters.
Any console alarm, dial alarm or local alarm.
Any device, such as a bell, siren, whistle, horn, gong or
klaxon, employed to call attention to and which may be heard beyond
the limits of the property concerned.
Any type of alarm device actuating equipment in the alarm
console providing warning of intrusion, fire, smoke, flood or other
peril.
Limited to a member of the Police Department. The "designated
representative" may also function as the alarm system inspector.
That type of automatic telephone dialing device using the
telephone system to transmit an alarm of intrusion, fire, smoke, flood
or other peril to the Police Department.
Any alarm activated by inadvertence, negligence or the unintentional
act of someone other than an intruder, including alarms caused by
the malfunctioning of the alarm device or other relevant equipment.
This shall not include alarms created by the malfunctioning of the
alarm console.
The person obtaining the license to maintain the alarm console,
as hereinafter set forth.
Any alarm device which when actuated produces an audible
signal to give a warning of intrusion, fire, smoke, flood or other
peril.
Any person owning or operating an alarm system within the
scope of this chapter who has been issued a permit to operate such
system.
Any individual, natural person, partnership, joint venture, society, association, club, trustee, trust, corporation or unincorporated group; or any officer, agent, employee, servant, factor or any kind of personal representatives of any thereof in any capacity, acting either for himself or herself or for any other person, under either personal appointment or pursuant to law, but shall not include the Township of Hazlet, any department, officer, board or commission listed in § 5-9 and the Township of Hazlet Board of Education.
[Added 5-3-1983 by Ord. No. 578-83]
A.
There is hereby established a police alarm console
license, which shall be granted only after advertisement for competitive,
sealed bids, as required by the Local Public Contracts Law (N.J.S.A.
40A:11-1 et seq.). Any such licensee shall have exclusive use and
control of the alarm console, except for the use by the Township,
and such licensee shall be responsible, at no cost to the Township,
for the establishment, construction and installation of such console,
containing equipment and being of a design approved by the Chief of
Police or his or her agent, and for the care, maintenance and management
of the console thereafter.
B.
Such licensee shall locate the console and relocate
the console, if necessary, under the supervision of the Chief of Police
or his or her agent, at no cost to the Township.
C.
For any such license granted hereunder, the licensee
shall assume all liability and agree to indemnify and save harmless
the Township, its agents and the Police Department for any acts in
conjunction therewith.
D.
Determination of licensee. The alarm console license,
as provided for herein, shall be awarded by the Township Committee
only after advertisement for competitive sealed bids, as required
by the Local Public Contracts Law.
A.
Any person who desires to own or operate an alarm
system shall make application in writing to the Chief of Police on
the form provided by the Police Department. The application shall
contain at least the location of the alarm system, the name of the
installer of the device, the type of device, provisions relating to
false alarms and testing procedures, a list of persons to be contacted
in the event of an alarm and such other information as may be required
by the Chief of Police.
B.
The Chief of Police shall issue a permit for the operation
of an alarm system if the designated representative is satisfied that
the registration information is complete and that the alarm system
shall be operated in conformance with this chapter. The permit may
be granted subject to any special conditions stated thereon, if necessary.
A.
The Township shall be under no duty or obligation
to any permittee hereunder or to any alarm console licensee hereunder,
the alarm console and allied equipment being maintained at will and
subject to termination at any time by cancellation of the system by
resolution duly adopted by the Township Committee.
B.
Any individual permit issued hereunder may be revoked
at any time by the Township Committee upon the recommendation of the
Chief of Police, provided that 30 days' notice is given in writing
to the permittee.
C.
Any registration permitted hereunder shall be accepted
upon the express condition that the registrant shall indemnify and
hold the Township harmless from and on account of any and all damages
arising out of the activities.
A.
The licensee for the police alarm console shall be
permitted to charge subscribers for installation and/or maintenance
of the alarm console connection. The fee to be charged shall be determined
by applicable bidding procedures set forth in the Local Public Contracts
Law (N.J.S.A. 40A:11-1 et seq.). The licensee's fees to subscribers,
as determined by the Township Committee under applicable bidding procedures,
shall be fixed for the term of the license and shall be uniform to
all subscribers. No fee, however, shall be charged to the Township
or the Board of Education for any existing or future alarm console
connections.
B.
For console alarms, the registrant shall pay whatever charges are required by any alarm company making such installation and, in addition thereto, such charges, as hereinbefore provided for, to the licensee for the alarm control panel and the circuit rental charges to the telephone company, as may be necessary and as may be determined under Subsection A herein.
C.
For each dial alarm, the owner or operator shall pay
to the Township an annual fee of $20 to cover the costs of the special
phone line or lines required in the police headquarters necessitated
by these systems. Such annual fee shall be for the period January
1 to December 31, inclusive, or any part thereof, and shall be collected
by the Police Chief or his or her designated representative and forwarded
to the Township Chief Financial Officer monthly, together with a report
thereon.
[Amended 9-21-1993 by Ord. No. 923-93]
D.
Local alarms shall be registered, but no fee shall
be charged.
A.
A dial alarm is any alarm device which, when activated,
automatically or electronically selects a telephone line, dials the
special telephone number at police headquarters and delivers a prerecorded
message requesting police, fire or other Township agency assistance.
B.
Dial alarms shall only be coded to dial a special
telephone number, which number shall be provided by the Chief of Police
or his or her designated representative only to the dial alarm permittee.
No dial alarm shall be coded to dial the number of the general police
switchboard.
C.
The message shall conform to an approved format, the
total length of which shall not exceed 15 seconds.
D.
The message shall be transmitted at least twice, but
no more than four times.
E.
Any person having a dial alarm which dials the general
police number, upon discovery thereof, shall receive notice in writing
from the Chief of Police requiring the owner to comply with the terms
of this chapter. If the owner fails to do so within 30 days of the
receipt of such notice, he or she shall then be liable to pay the
Township a penalty of $100.
[Amended 9-21-1993 by Ord. No. 923-93]
A.
All components of the alarm equipment shall be maintained
in good repair by the owner, and when evidence exists that there has
been failure to comply with the operational requirements of this chapter,
the Chief of Police or his or her agent shall then be authorized to
demand that such device be disconnected until such time as compliance
with current requirements is reestablished.
B.
On-call repairperson.
(1)
Any license for the alarm console shall provide for
a repairperson to be on call at all times, and such service shall
be provided within one hour of notification by the Police Department
of any malfunctions of any equipment.
(2)
Any permittee utilizing the console shall provide
for a repairperson to be on call at all times, and such service shall
be provided within eight hours of notification to the permittee by
the Police Department of any malfunction of any equipment.
The Chief of Police shall have the right to
disconnect any malfunctioning equipment from the alarm console until
such time as the malfunction has been corrected.
All audible signaling devices shall be equipped
with a timing device to limit the sounding of the signaling device
to 15 minutes or less.
The Chief of Police may, from time to time,
promulgate written rules and regulations, subject to the approval
of the Township Committee, supplementing this chapter, in order to
provide for recordkeeping and efficient operation and management of
the system.
A.
In the case of a false alarm, any person having knowledge
thereof shall immediately notify the Police Department.
[Amended 9-21-1993 by Ord. No. 923-93]
B.
In addition, in the case of false alarms, the Chief
of Police shall cause an investigation to be made and shall keep a
record of such alarms on file.
C.
For such false alarms, the Township Committee prescribes
the following penalties:
(1)
For the first and second false alarm in any given
calendar year, a warning shall be issued.
(2)
For the third false alarm in the same calendar year,
a fine of $25 shall be paid to the Township.
[Amended 9-21-1993 by Ord. No. 923-93]
(3)
For the fourth or any subsequent false alarm, a fine
of $50 shall be paid to the Township.
[Amended 9-21-1993 by Ord. No. 923-93]
D.
Where the investigation of the Police Department discloses
continued abuse of the privilege of connection to the alarm console
and a disregard of the permittee for taking remedial steps to avoid
false alarms, the Chief of Police shall have the right to require
disconnection for a limited or permanent time, giving the permittee
an opportunity to show cause before the Township Committee why such
action should not be taken.
Any unauthorized equipment may be disconnected
by the Chief of Police or his or her designated representative for
noncompliance with this chapter.
A.
Any person installing or maintaining unauthorized
equipment shall be prosecuted for violation of this chapter. Each
and every day such equipment is in operation shall be considered a
separate violation.
B.
Any permittee shall, by acceptance of the permit,
be deemed as having consented to inspection of the premises on which
such alarm devices are installed, at reasonable hours, by the Chief
of Police or his or her designated representative.
C.
For violation of any provision of this chapter, the maximum penalty, upon conviction, shall not exceed the maximum penalties set forth in Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article III. Each and every violation of any provision of this chapter shall be considered a separate violation and shall subject the person so charged to the maximum penalty.
[Added 9-21-1993 by Ord. No. 923-93]
