[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Macedon 2-24-2005 by L.L. No. 1-2005 (Ch. 41 of the 1996 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Automatic Alarm System Law of the Town of Macedon."
The intent of this chapter is to reduce the number of false fire and police alarm calls which the local fire department and law enforcement officers are required to respond to within the Town of Macedon, by reducing the number of chronic repeat calls to any particular property.
Any owner of real property having a fire and/or police alarm system or system of fire and/or police alarm devices on said property on or after the effective date of this chapter shall, for each and every false fire or police emergency alarm to which a fire department or police agency (including, but not limited to, the Macedon Police, Wayne County Sheriff's Department or State Police) responds, be subject to the following conditions:
A. 
For up to and including three false fire and/or police emergency alarms in any calendar year, a written warning shall be issued by the Code Enforcement Officer or Fire Marshal, and no fine shall be imposed.
B. 
For each of the next three false fire and/or police emergency alarms in any calendar year, a fine for each false alarm in the amount of $100 shall be paid by the property owner to the Town of Macedon.
C. 
For each subsequent false fire and/or police emergency alarm in any calendar year, the property owner shall pay a fine to the Town of Macedon in the sum of $250.
Any property owner who is fined for one or more false alarms may contest such fine by mailing written notice of objection to the Town Supervisor within 10 days after the notice of the fine is sent. Failure to do so causes the fine to be deemed final. The Supervisor shall then, within the next succeeding 30 calendar days, send notice to the property owner at his last known address of a date for a hearing before the Town Supervisor. The hearing shall be informal, and the property owner shall not be required to be put under oath. The Town Supervisor shall send written notice of his or her decision to the property owner within 10 days of the hearing, and the decision of the Supervisor shall be final.
All notices sent pursuant to this chapter shall be sent by certified mail or registered mail, return receipt requested, and shall be considered sent on the date of mailing.
[Amended 6-25-2020 by L.L. No. 3-2020]
The malfunction of an alarm system which causes a false alarm shall, even though it is a malfunction, constitute a false alarm, and a warning shall be issued or a fine shall be imposed for a false alarm as set forth in this chapter.
All fines imposed for false alarms as established by this chapter shall be paid within 30 days of the fine being final.
If the fine is not paid within 30 days of the charge being final, then a late penalty of 10% shall be added to the amount charged. For each month thereafter, an interest charge of 1% per month shall be added to the charge until paid. Any charge overdue for 30 days or more, together with interest and penalties, shall be added to the next Town and county tax bill for the property, if the total due has not been paid by the last date on which said delinquent payments can be added to the Town and county tax bill.
In the event of an automatic fire and/or police alarm on a private or public premises, if entry is deemed necessary by the responding emergency service, and the property owner or agent thereof cannot be reached, any damages incurred as a result of entry will be the responsibility of the property owner/agent.