Exciting enhancements are coming soon to eCode360! Learn more 🡪
Town of Orangetown, NY
Rockland County
By using eCode360 you agree to be legally bound by the Terms of Use. If you do not agree to the Terms of Use, please do not use eCode360.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (2) Index
Public Documents
Minutes (1480)
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Orangetown 4-9-1984 by L.L. No. 5, 1984. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This local law shall be known and may be cited as the "Alarm Systems Law."
The Orangetown Police Department has recorded an extraordinary number of false burglar and fire alarms emanating from automated devices. These signals require that police and other emergency services respond to the false alarm, exposing them to unnecessary hazards and risks, wasting taxpayer funds and depriving other citizens, who may need emergency services, of those services. This law is intended to remedy this waste by regulating alarm systems and reducing the number of false alarms.
A. 
The following definitions will apply to terms used in this local law:
ALARM DEVICE
Any device which, when activated, transmits a signal to police headquarters or to a private central alarm station or to the Rockland County Fire Control Center or produces any audible or visual or telephone signal to which the Police Department and/or the Fire Department is expected to respond.
ALARM INDICATOR PANEL
Any device located within the Police Department headquarters and monitored by employees of the Town of Orangetown which indicates the status of each direct alarm.
ALARM INSTALLER
Any person who installs alarms on any premises (except automobiles) located in the Town of Orangetown.
ALARM SYSTEM
Any alarm device or combination of alarm devices located at a specific building, business, structure, residence or address.
[Added 9-23-1985 by L.L. No. 8, 1985]
ALARM USER
Any person, business or entity on whose premises an alarm device is located within the Town of Orangetown.
CENTRAL ALARM STATION
Any private or commercial entity which receives signals from alarm devices within the Town of Orangetown and relays information pertaining to said alarm devices to police headquarters.
DIALER ALARM
A telephone interfaced device that automatically connects to police headquarters and transmits any signal or impulse indicating that an alarm system has been activated or an emergency condition exists within the Town of Orangetown.
FALSE ALARM
The activation of an alarm system which is determined by responding Police and/or Fire Department personnel not to have been caused by or as the result of a crime or emergency condition.
PERSON
Any natural person, firm, business or organization of any kind.
POLICE CHIEF
The Chief of the Police Department of the Town of Orangetown.
POLICE OR POLICE DEPARTMENT
The Police Department of the Town of Orangetown.
TOWN
The Town of Orangetown.
B. 
Word usage. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the plural number indicate the singular number and words in the singular number shall indicate the plural number. Further, a masculine pronoun shall include the feminine. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory.
Excluded from the provisions of this local law is any alarm device installed in or on a motor vehicle. Also excluded from the provisions of this local law is any device designed to alert the occupants of any building of an emergency condition therein and which does not produce any audible or visual external signal or internal signal perceptible from outside the building in question.
A. 
Every alarm user shall obtain an alarm user permit for each alarm system he owns, controls or operates within the Town of Orangetown.
B. 
Applications for alarm user permits shall include the following information:
(1) 
Applicant's name.
(2) 
Address of protected premises.
(3) 
Applicant's home and business telephone numbers.
(4) 
The type of emergency the alarm system is designed to detect.
(5) 
The person that sold, installed, responds to and/or maintains the alarm system.
(6) 
The names, addresses and telephone numbers of at least two persons who can be reached at any time to disconnect the system.
C. 
The alarm user shall notify the Police Department of any changes in the above information at least two days prior to the change taking effect. Failure so to do shall provide grounds for revocation or suspension of the permit.
D. 
The information contained in the alarm user permit shall be maintained by the Police Department and its inspection restricted to those Police Department employees specifically assigned to alarm system related duties.
E. 
Any alarm system user who operates an alarm system without first having obtained an alarm user permit as required herein or after having had a permit suspended or revoked shall be guilty of a violation of this local law.
[Amended 9-23-1985 by L.L. No. 8-1985; 5-9-2005 by L.L. No. 11-2005; 11-13-2006 by L.L. No. 18-2006]
A. 
More than four false alarms in any twelve-month period from any alarm system for which an alarm user permit has been obtained will constitute grounds for suspension of said permit.
B. 
The holder of any alarm user permit charged with a false alarm as described herein may appeal said charge in writing to the Chief of Police within seven days of notification of the charge. False alarm charges may be waived by the Chief of Police after consideration of said appeal.
C. 
In addition to the suspension of an alarm user permit, more than four false alarms within any twelve-month period from any alarm system shall constitute a violation of this local law and shall be punishable as set forth in Chapter 41A of the Code.
D. 
Any person that causes a false alarm at a residential or commercial premises that utilizes an alarm system shall constitute a violation of this section whether or not said person is the owner of the premises or has an alarm user permit and shall be punishable as set forth in Chapter 41A of the Code.
In the event that an alarm user permit has been suspended or revoked, the alarm user may have the user permit reinstated by forwarding to the Police Department, in writing, verification that the conditions causing such false alarms have been repaired, corrected or otherwise eliminated. Reinstatement shall not affect the false alarm count charged to any alarm user permit during each calendar year.
A cancellation code will be available through the Police Department for every alarm user permit. The code will allow the alarm user the ability to abort any alarm activation. Alarm signals that are promptly and properly aborted by code will not be charged against the alarm user permit as a false alarm.
Each alarm system within the Town of Orangetown must be equipped as follows before an alarm user permit can be issued:
A. 
The alarm system shall contain an automatic audible signal cut-off device so that the maximum time any alarm shall cause an externally audible signal to be emanated does not exceed 30 minutes per activation.
B. 
The alarm system shall be equipped with a standby power source sufficient to maintain the system in a state of readiness for at least six hours in the event of a power failure.
C. 
Automatic dialer devices, upon a single stimulus, shall not exceed two separate calls to the Police Department, and no such call shall exceed one minute in duration. There must be at least a two-minute interval between calls, with the second call clearly identified as such.
D. 
The contents of any recorded message to be transmitted to the Police Department must be intelligible and in a format approved by the Chief of Police as appropriate for the type of emergency being reported.
E. 
Automatic dialer devices shall be connected to the Police Department only via telephone numbers designated by the Chief of Police for this purpose.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 1C-10, Alarm installer registration, as amended 9-23-1985 by L.L. No. 8, 1985, was repealed 7-18-1994 by L.L. No. 8, 1994.
Within 120 days of the effective date of this local law, every alarm user shall obtain an alarm user permit and bring every alarm system into compliance with the requirements of this local law.
[Amended 4-12-2004 by L.L. No. 2-2004]
The Police Department, police officers, the Bureau of Fire Prevention, the Chief of the Bureau of Fire Prevention, Fire Safety Inspectors, and/or Assistant Fire Inspectors of the Town of Orangetown shall be the agencies authorized, empowered and responsible for the enforcement and administration of this local law.
[Amended 10-16-1995 by L.L. No. 31-1995; 11-13-2006 by L.L. No. 18-2006]
In addition to the suspension or revocation of a license or permit, a violation of this local law may subject the violator to the following fines and penalties:
A. 
Alarm users.
(1) 
Operating or maintaining an alarm system without an alarm user permit: a penalty as set forth in Chapter 41A of this Code.
(2) 
Operating or maintaining an alarm system after an alarm user permit has been suspended or revoked: a penalty as set forth in Chapter 41A of this Code.
B. 
A violation of any other section of this local law for which no penalty has been prescribed may subject the violator to a penalty as set forth in Chapter 41A of this Code.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part of this local law shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part thereof directly referred to in said judgment.
This local law shall take effect immediately upon publishing, posting and upon filing a copy with the Secretary of State as required by law.