Borough of Mars, PA Chapter 75 ALARMS

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Mars 12-30-1992 by Ord. No. 378. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Police Department — See Ch. 52.

Open burning — See Ch. 100.

Uniform construction codes — See Ch. 107.

§ 75-1 Definitions; word usage.

A. As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:

ACCIDENTAL FALSE ALARM

Any false alarm which is not intentionally caused and which occurs when an actual intrusion, crime, fire or other emergency has not taken place.

ALARM

A communication to the Police, Fire or EMS Department indicating that a crime, fire or other emergency situation warranting immediate action by the Police, Fire or EMS Department has occurred or is occurring.

ALARM DEVICE

A device designed to automatically transmit an alarm by wire, telephone, radio signal or other means:

(1) To the Butler Communications Center or to the Borough Police desk;

(2) To a person who is instructed to notify the Butler Communications Center or the Borough Police desk of the alarm; or

(3) To activate a bell or sounding device to be heard outside a building, which is intended to alert the police or others to the existence of a crime, fire or other emergency situation warranting action by emergency services.

BOROUGH

The Borough of Mars, Butler County, Pennsylvania.

CENTRAL STATION SYSTEM

A system, or group of systems, in which the operations of circuits and devices are signaled automatically to, recorded in, maintained, and supervised from an approved central station having competent and experienced observers and operators who shall, upon receipt of a signal, take such action as shall be required under the rules established for their guidance. Such systems shall be controlled and operated by a person, firm, or corporation whose principal business is the furnishing and maintaining of supervised signal service and who does not have interest in protecting properties.

EMS

The emergency medical services of the Borough.

FALSE ALARM

An alarm to which the Police, Fire or EMS Department responds, resulting from the activation of an alarm device when a crime, fire or other emergency warranting immediate action by the Police Department, Fire Department or EMS has not in fact occurred.

INDIRECT ALARM DEVICE

An alarm designed to transmit an alarm to a person who is instructed to notify the Police or Fire Department, or other emergency service of the alarm.

INTERMEDIARY

A central protective system or an answering service as herein defined.

KEY

To use a telephone line and equipment for transmitting a message, either directly or indirectly, by an automatic protection device.

PERSON

An individual, corporation, partnership, incorporated association or other similar entity.

PROPRIETARY PROTECTIVE SIGNALING SYSTEM

An installation of protective signaling systems which serve contiguous or noncontiguous properties under one ownership from a central supervising station located at the protected property, whose trained, competent personnel are in constant attendance. This includes the central supervising station, power supplies, signal-initiating devices, initiating devices, initiating device circuits, signal notification appliances, equipment for the automatic, permanent visual recording of signals and equipment for the operation of emergency building-control services.

REMOTE STATION PROTECTIVE SIGNALING SYSTEM

An installation using supervised dedicated circuits, installed to transmit alarm, supervisory and trouble signals from one or more protected premises to a remote location at which appropriate action is taken.

SILENT ALARM

A protective system that does not emit an audible signal or tone when activated at a protected site and is monitored by an intermediary or an emergency communications center.

B. In this chapter, the singular shall include the plural, the plural shall include the singular, and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.

§ 75-2 False alarms.

A. Accidental false alarms. Any person causing accidental false alarms for any reason shall pay to the Borough of Mars a charge for each and every accidental false alarm to which the Police, Fire, and/or EMS Department or other emergency service responds, in each calendar year, as follows:[1]

(1) First to third alarm each year: as determined from time to time by resolution.

(2) A person that owns, uses or possesses an alarm device or automatic dialing device may not, after causing or permitting three false alarms to occur in a consecutive twelve-month period, cause or permit a subsequent false alarm to occur in the same consecutive twelve-month period. A person that violates this subsection commits a summary offense and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $300 pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 7511.

[1]: Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

B. The charges levied by this chapter shall not apply to false alarms due to weather conditions or the first three false alarms which shall occur during the first six months from initial installation of the system due to system malfunction and one false alarm per year thereafter.

C. When an accidental false alarm occurs, the Borough shall notify the person responsible for the alarm device from which the false alarm emanated that a false alarm charge is due and the amount thereof.

D. An accidental false alarm charge shall be due and payable to the Borough of Mars 30 days from the date of the notice of the charge.

E. Failure of a person causing an accidental false alarm to pay a false alarm charge on or before the date due shall constitute a violation of this chapter and shall subject said person to the penalties set forth in § 75-5 hereof.

§ 75-3 Operational standards.

A. If an alarm device is designed to cause a bell, siren, or sound-making device to be activated on or near the premises on which the alarm device is installed at the time it gives an alarm, said alarm device shall be equipped with a timing mechanism that will disengage the audible alarm after a maximum period of 10 minutes, other than fire alarms. Exceptions shall be made for certified systems requiring longer sounding alarms for insurance purposes, providing that certification and policy requirements are documented with the Borough and maintained, and further providing that these devices are equipped with timers to disengage the audible alarm after the minimum time required for certification or retroactive to meet this chapter within 120 days of enactment.

B. The sensory mechanism used in conjunction with an alarm device must be adjusted to suppress false indications of fire or intrusion, so that the alarm device will not be activated by impulse due to transient pressure change with waterlines, short flashes of light, wind noises, such as rattling or vibrating of doors or windows, vehicular noises adjacent to the premises, or other forces unrelated to genuine alarm situations.

C. The alarm device must be maintained in good repair to assure reliability of operation.

D. No person shall conduct or test any alarm device without first notifying the Butler County Communications Center. Where the equipment is keyed through an intermediary, no such permission is necessary unless the alarm or signal is to be relayed to the central receiving station.

§ 75-4 Administration and enforcement.

The Borough Safety Committee shall develop and implement the necessary procedures for the effective administration and enforcement of this chapter.

§ 75-5 Violations and penalties. [1]

Any person, firm, partnership, or corporation who shall violate any provision of this chapter or who shall fail to pay a charge for a false alarm shall, upon conviction before the Magisterial District Judge thereof, be punishable for each offense by a maximum fine of $300 or by imprisonment for not more than 90 days.

[1]: Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).