[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Fanwood 12-9-2008 by Ord. No. 08-22R. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to establish standards and regulations
concerning the installation, operation and maintenance of certain
alarm systems within the Borough of Fanwood ("Borough") and to reduce
and/or eliminate false alarms.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any business operated by a person, partnership, corporation,
etc., for profit, which engages in the activity of altering, installing,
leasing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, selling, servicing, or
responding to a fire or burglar alarm system or which causes any of
these activities to take place. Excluded from this definition, however,
are retail establishments that sell alarm systems over the counter.
Any type of alarm-activating equipment which provides warning
of burglary, intrusion, fire, flood or like peril causing potential
for harm to life or property.
One or more alarm devices installed in a building or structure
employed to call attention to, or provide warning of, intrusion by
any person or fire, whether the same provides a visual, audio or electronic
response, alarm or warning of an emergency such as burglary, intrusion,
fire, flood or like peril. The term "alarm system" shall not include:
Concealed battery or electrically powered concealed battery
or electrically powered smoke detector or carbon monoxide detector
units located within single-family residences and which give out an
audible signal.
Automobile alarm systems.
An alarm designed to alert only the inhabitants of a premises
that does not have a sounding device, which can be heard on the exterior
of the alarm site.
An alarm station that transmits the alarm to an alarm-processing
center, which then calls to dispatch the Police and/or the Fire Department.
An alarm device using telephone or other lines that transmits
an alarm signal of intrusion to the Fanwood Police Department or any
other third party.
Any alarm or signal activated or transmitted eliciting a
response by police or firefighters or other public officials by inadvertent,
negligent, unintentional or intentional act or omission of a person
(caused or transmitted other than by an intruder), and shall also
include alarms caused by malfunctioning of the alarm device or other
related equipment (but excluding an alarm signal caused by violent
conditions of nature, such as, but not limited to, lightning, tornadoes,
hurricanes, or other extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject
to control by the alarm business or alarm user).
A.
Person(s) required to register their alarm devices shall complete
and file with the Borough Clerk a registration application, which
may be obtained from the Borough Clerk's office. The Borough
Clerk shall file a copy of each registration form with the Fanwood
Police Department and the Clerk's office and the Police Department
shall keep the records confidential and not open to public inspection
because of issues of safety and confidentiality. The registrant shall
provide the following information:
(1)
The full name and address of the registrant, including a complete
physical address and property description, which will permit the appropriate
response to the alarm.
(2)
Name and address and telephone number of the person installing, maintaining
and/or owning the system.
(3)
The type of system.
(4)
The name and address of the person(s) responsible for maintaining,
monitoring and initially responding to an activation of an alarm device
and a phone number for such entity and/or person(s).
(5)
The name, address and telephone number of the person who may be contacted
in the event of an alarm, and at least one person who is authorized
to receive notification of an alarm call and who is authorized to
enter upon the premises in which the alarm system is located.
B.
No further renewal registration shall be required unless and until
there has occurred any material change in the information previously
submitted with respect to any alarm system, in which event it shall
be the duty of the user of the alarm system, within 10 days of such
material change, to file a supplemental or revised registration containing
accurate, current information.
A registration fee of $10 shall be submitted with each registration
form. A registration form and registration fee shall be submitted
within 30 days of the system installation. Failure to submit a registration
form and/or pay the registration fee in a timely manner shall result
in a fine not to exceed $50, provided the system is registered within
30 days of imposition of the fine. After that period, each additional
day shall constitute a separate violation. All persons having an alarm
system installed on property as of November 31, 2008, shall submit
a registration form on or before June 30, 2009, and shall not be required
to pay the registration fee for that alarm system so long as the person
submits the registration form by June 30, 2009.
It shall be unlawful for any person to cause, allow or activate a false alarm as defined in this chapter. In case of a false alarm, any person and any registrant who violates this chapter shall each be subject to the provisions of § 108-9 hereafter. In case of a false alarm, any person having knowledge of the false alarm immediately shall notify the Fanwood Police Department. The Fanwood Police Department shall be responsible for enforcing this chapter.
Dial alarm devices may be connected to the Fanwood Police Department by telephone or other lines as are permitted and designated by the Fanwood Police Department or to other law enforcement agencies having jurisdiction or to third-party providers. Dial alarms shall be registered as specified in § 108-3 of this chapter.
A.
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any alarm system
installed on property owned or occupied by any municipal, county,
state, or federal government agency or office or to any alarm device
having only an indoor audible or visual/flashing system, and which
are not dial alarm devices or any medical alert system.
B.
Alarm devices having an audible alarm installed out-of-doors shall be designed to limit the operation of a bell or sound-producing instrument to a maximum of 10 minutes after activation. If the duration of an outside-activated audible alarm exceeds 10 minutes, the warnings and penalties provided by § 108-9 shall apply as though a false alarm has been activated.
C.
The Borough is under, and assumes no duty or obligation to any permittee
or other persons by reasons of issuance or failure to issue any registration
permit.
D.
The Mayor and Council may, from time to time, promulgate rules and
regulations supplementing this chapter in order to provide for recordkeeping
and efficient management of the system.
A.
Each alarm system shall be installed utilizing discrete circuitry
for multipurpose alarm systems to insure appropriate emergency response.
B.
Any alarm system which requires for its operation electricity supplied
by a public utility may be equipped with a battery rendering it operable
in the event of a power outage, if so desired by the property owner.
Such a battery backup system shall be required for any alarm system
that will trigger itself automatically in the event of a power fluctuation,
surge, or outage.
C.
All burglar alarm systems must be provided with a device that will
automatically shut off the alarm after 10 minutes of activation.
D.
All burglar alarm systems not fitted with an external key switch
shall be equipped with a time delay of at least 15 seconds which may
include an audible signal of the same length of time, said time delay
to be designated to prevent accidental activation of the system. The
fifteen-second signal, if utilized, shall be audible only within the
structure and not externally.
E.
No person shall install, cause to be installed, or permit to be installed
any alarm device, by whatever name known, which automatically selects
a telephone line dedicated to the Borough's Police Department
or Fire Department for the purpose of playing a recorded message to
report any emergency.
F.
In the event an alarm system, other than a fire or burglary alarm
system, is tied into and/or serviced by a central station or answering
service, upon activation of said alarm system, the central station
or answering service shall verify the validity of the alarm prior
to notifying the Police Department of it.
G.
The resetting of any transmitted fire alarm shall be done in the
presence of the Borough Fire Department. In no case shall an alarm
be reset prior to the Fire Department's authorization. In case
of burglary alarms, the Police Department shall not be responsible
for resetting the alarm system.
H.
No alarm business or person owning, using or possessing an alarm
system shall cause or permit the occurrence of repeated false alarms,
whether intentional, accidental or otherwise.
I.
An alarm business having knowledge of conditions described in Subsection H above shall be responsible for notifying the Borough Police Department when one of its customers using or possessing an alarm system sells his or her property. The alarm business shall notify the Police Department as to the name of the new owner and whether or not the new owner is continuing with an alarm device or system within the property.
Any person, firm, corporation or other entity which violates
the terms of this chapter, including but not limited to failure to
initially register or providing false registration information or
other provisions of this chapter, shall be subject to a fine not exceeding
$1,000; provided, however, that the following minimum and mandatory
fines shall apply to false alarms.
A.
For the first two false alarms in any calendar year, a warning shall
be issued.
B.
For the third and/or fourth false alarms within any single calendar
year, a fine of $35 for each shall be paid to the Borough.
C.
For the fifth through ninth false alarms within any single calendar
year, a fine of $75 for each shall be paid to the Borough.
D.
For the 10th and subsequent false alarms in any single calendar year,
a fine of $100 for each shall be paid to the Borough.
E.
For any false alarm exceeding four in the same calendar year, an
advisory letter shall accompany the payment of the fine (dated within
30 days following the date on which a complaint has been issued) from
an alarm business stating that the system is properly operating. Failure
to provide such an advisory letter shall constitute a separate offense,
subject to a maximum fine of $250.
F.
In the event the Borough Police Department determines that the registrant
failed to take reasonable steps to avoid false alarms, the Police
Department shall have the right to require the alarm to be disconnected
for a period of time not to exceed one year unless the number of false
alarms exceeds 10 in any single calendar year, in which event the
Police Department may direct the alarm system to be permanently disconnected.
However, no such disconnection and revocation of the permit shall
take place without providing the registrant an opportunity to show
cause before the Borough Court why such action should not be taken.
The occurrence of three or more false alarms in any calendar month
shall raise the presumption that the registrant is disregarding the
responsibility to take reasonable remedial steps to avoid false alarms.
In the event registrant's alarm is disconnected as the result
of an action under this section of the Code, and in the event the
registrant is allowed to reconnect the equipment in the future, registrant
shall be responsible for a re-registration fee of $50.
