[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Mahoning 10-20-2008. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following words
and phrases shall have the meanings specified:
A device or system of devices that emits, transmits or relays
a signal intended to summon or that can reasonably be expected to
summon to the site of the alarm system emergency services of the Township.
Alarm systems shall include a local alarm as herein defined, but do
not include an alarm installed in a vehicle unless the vehicle is
permanently located at a fixed site; or an alarm designed to alert
only persons occupying the site of the alarm system.
The police, fire and/or ambulance services of the Township.
Any activation of an alarm system by inadvertence, negligence
or the intentional or unintentional act of a person to which emergency
services of the Township respond, and there existed at the inception
of the alarm no fire, crime in progress, medical emergency or other
activity necessitating a response. False alarms include, but are not
limited to, alarms resulting from:
Faulty, defective, or malfunctioning equipment.
Improper installation or maintenance.
Improper monitoring by the alarm company.
Mistakes made by contractors, maids, realtors,
etc.
Items which cause motion detectors to activate
(balloons, curtains, etc.)
Activations due to loud noises.
Loose-fitting doors and windows.
Pets, rodents, or any other animal or insect.
An alarm system that emits a signal at the alarm system site
that is audible or visible off of the site.
Any individual, partnership, corporation, association, political
subdivision or other entity of any kind.
Mahoning Township, Montour County, Pennsylvania.
A.
All persons owning or operating an alarm system upon
real property within the Township shall register such system with
the Police Department of the Township. Persons owning or operating
an alarm system on the effective date of this chapter shall register
such system within 60 days of such date. Persons installing an alarm
system after the effective date of this chapter shall register such
system prior to its installation.
B.
A fee for the registration of an alarm system to be
paid by the registrant shall be in such amount as the Board of Supervisors
of the Township shall by resolution from time to time establish.
All persons registering an alarm system with
the Township shall furnish to the Police Department such information
as shall reasonably be requested, including, but not limited to, the
following:
A.
The name of the owner or occupant of the real property
upon which the alarm system has been or is being installed. If the
owner or occupant shall be other than an individual, the owner or
occupant shall also provide the name of an individual responsible
to the owner or occupant for the operation of the alarm system.
B.
The address of the real property upon which the alarm
system has been or is being installed by street name and number and
the telephone number of the owner or occupant.
C.
Two back-up or emergency telephone numbers where the
owner or occupant can be reached or through which contact can be made
when the real property is unoccupied, including the names of the persons
to which such numbers are assigned.
D.
The name, address and telephone number of the vendor
or installer of the alarm system.
E.
The name and address of the manufacturer of the alarm
system.
F.
A description of the alarm system installed, including
the number and type of devices used for the purpose of activating
the system, the location of such devices, the mechanism for automatically
deactivating the local alarm and the methodology used for transmitting
or relaying the signal to the emergency services of the Township.
G.
The name, address and telephone number of any monitoring
or central station service to which the alarm system transmits a signal
for relay to Township emergency services.
All persons owning or operating a registered alarm system upon real property within the Township shall renew such registration on an annual basis. The Township Police Department, on or about June 1 of each year, shall send to the owner or operator of each registered alarm system a renewal application updating the registration information required pursuant to § 83-3 hereof. Completed renewal applications must be submitted to the Police Department within 30 days of the mailing of such applications to the owner/operators.
It shall be unlawful for any person to own,
operate, install or maintain an alarm system which automatically transmits
an alarm telephonically or otherwise directly to any of the Township's
emergency services. All calls for emergency services initiated by
an alarm system shall be relayed by County Control to the Township.
All local alarms owned, operated, installed
or maintained within the Township shall be equipped with a mechanism
which will automatically deactivate the signal emission from the alarm
device after 10 minutes of operation.
All persons owning or operating an alarm system
within the Township shall have the following duties and responsibilities
with respect to such system:
A.
To keep and maintain the system in good operating
condition, order and repair.
B.
To keep and maintain, at the site of the alarm system,
a complete set of written operating instructions for such system.
C.
To provide training and instruction to individuals
customarily occupying the site of the alarm system in its proper operation.
D.
To cooperate with the Township in preventing or minimizing
the number of false alarms originating from the site of the alarm
system.
A person owning, operating or possessing an
alarm system within the Township shall be subject to notice, warnings
and penalties for false alarms emitting from any alarm system within
the twelve-month period from January 1 until December 31 of each year
as follows:
A.
First and second false alarms will result in a written
notice.
B.
Third and fourth false alarms will result in a penalty
of $100 each.
C.
Fifth and sixth false alarms will result in a penalty
of $150 each.
D.
Seventh and eighth false alarms will result in a penalty
of $200 each.
E.
Ninth false alarm will result in a penalty of $250.
F.
Tenth and each subsequent false alarm will result
in a penalty of $300 each.
A.
Any person violating § 83-8D of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof in a summary proceeding before a District Justice, be sentenced in accordance with Title 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 7511(c)(1).
B.
Any person violating any other provision of this chapter
shall, upon conviction thereof in a summary proceeding before a District
Justice, pay a fine in an amount not exceeding $300.
