[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Monroe 6-2-1977 by L.L. No. 6-1977 (Ch. 5 of the 1968
Code); amended in its entirety 10-7-1986 by L.L. No. 4-1986. Subsequent amendments
noted where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to establish
standards and controls of the various types of intrusion, holdup and
other emergency signals from alarm devices that require response,
investigation and safeguarding of property at the location of an event
reported by a signal which is transmitted by telephone or radio or
which is otherwise relayed to the Police or Fire Department by an
alarm device requiring investigation or other action by any person
acting in response to a signal actuated by an alarm device, including
such devices already in use within the Village of Monroe.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following
definitions shall apply:
Any person who is employed by any business, firm, corporation
or other commercial entity that is licensed hereunder to conduct the
business of owning, operating, maintaining, installing, leasing or
selling alarm devices and whose duties include any of the following:
selling, maintaining, leasing, servicing, repairing, moving or installing,
in or on any building, place or premises, any alarm device, as defined
in this chapter, within the Village of Monroe.
Any device which, when actuated by a criminal act or other
emergency requiring response, transmits a prerecorded message or other
signal by telephone, radio or other means to a central alarm station
or directly to the Police or Fire Department or produces an audible
or visible signal designed to notify persons within audible or visible
alarm range of the signal.
Any alarm device or aggregation of alarm devices installed
on or within a single building or on or within more than one building
or area adjacently located on a common site at a specific location.
Any business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity
which is in the business of owning, operating, maintaining, installing,
leasing or selling an alarm device or devices or system of alarm devices,
which business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity is, as
owner, operator, provider of maintenance service, installer, lessor
or seller of said device, devices or system of devices, subject to
the license requirements of this chapter.
Any facility operated by a private firm that owns or leases
a system of alarm devices, which facility is manned by operators who
receive, record or validate alarm signals and relay information about
such validated signals to the Police or Fire Department, when appropriate.
Includes, but is not limited to, all property used for commercial
and business, industrial, warehouse, or similar purposes.
[Added 3-19-2019 by L.L.
No. 6-2019]
Any alarm device which is a telephone device or telephone
attachment that automatically or electronically selects a telephone
line connected to a central alarm station or Police or Fire Department
headquarters and reproduces a prerecorded message to report a criminal
act or other emergency requiring response.
Any alarm device connected directly by leased telephone wires
from a specific location to police or fire headquarters.
Any signal actuated by an alarm device to which the Police
or Fire Department responds, which is not the result of a fire, holdup,
robbery or other crime or emergency.
Any entry into an area or building equipped with one or more
alarm devices by any person or object whose entry actuates an alarm
device.
The Village Board of the Village of Monroe through the Village
Clerk.
Police and fire headquarters and other enclosures housing
privately or publicly owned equipment serving the Police and Fire
Departments.
Includes real property and buildings or structures.
[Added 3-19-2019 by L.L.
No. 6-2019]
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person, business, firm,
corporation or other commercial entity to operate, maintain, install,
lease or sell an alarm device or devices or system of alarm devices,
as defined by the terms of this chapter, without first obtaining a
license as hereinafter provided.
B.
Authority to grant licenses and permits.
(1)
The licensing authority is hereby authorized to grant
a revocable license upon approval of the Village Board of Trustees
to any business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity, authorizing
said business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity to do
business in the Village of Monroe by performing any or all of the
following functions: owning, operating, maintaining, installing, leasing
or selling an alarm device or devices or system of alarm devices.
(2)
The licensing authority is hereby authorized to grant
a revocable license upon approval of the Village Board to any alarm
agent.
(3)
The licensing authority is hereby authorized to grant
a revocable permit to any owner of property located within the Village
of Monroe or the lessee thereof to operate, maintain, install and
modify an alarm device.
(4)
All presently existing alarm devices and systems of
fire or police alarm devices and present owners and lessees of premises
having such devices or systems must comply with all provisions of
this chapter by such date as shall be fixed by resolution of the Village
Board of Trustees.
Application for licenses and permits shall be
made as follows:
A.
All businesses, firms, corporations or other commercial
entities which are in the business of owning, operating, maintaining,
installing, leasing or selling an alarm device or devices or system
of alarm devices who desire to conduct business in the Village of
Monroe shall apply to the licensing authority for a business license
on a form to be supplied by the licensing authority. The application
shall contain specific provisions relating to the quality, efficiency
and effectiveness of the device or system of devices owned or to be
operated, maintained, installed, leased or sold by the business licensee,
testing procedures involved and any other information the licensing
authority shall determine to be reasonably necessary to effectuate
the purpose of this chapter. Such business license shall be issued
for a one-year period, on a calendar-year basis or a part thereof,
and no license shall extend beyond December 31 of each year. Notwithstanding
this provision, a person having a business license may conduct such
business through January 31 of the year following the expiration of
his business license.
B.
Any person who is to be an alarm agent in the Village
of Monroe, before acting as such alarm agent, shall apply for and
receive a revocable alarm agent license. The application shall be
made to the licensing authority on a form to be supplied by the licensing
authority. The application shall contain specific provisions relating
to the alarm device or devices, holdup alarms, dial alarms or alarm
installations which are to be sold, leased, installed, operated or
maintained by the alarm agency, the skill and competency of the application
as an alarm agency and such other information the licensing authority
determines to be reasonably necessary to effectuate the purpose of
this chapter. Such license shall be issued for a one-year period,
on a calendar-year basis or a part thereof, and no license shall extend
beyond December 31 of each year. Notwithstanding this provision, a
person having an alarm agent license may act as such alarm agent through
January 31 of the year following the expiration of this license.
C.
Any
owner of commercial use premises in the Village of Monroe having installed
on its premises an alarm device or system of alarm devices shall apply
to the licensing authority for a permit to own or to otherwise have
such device or system on its premises. The application for a permit
shall be on a form developed by resolution of the Village Board of
Trustees and modified from time to time in the same manner and shall
contain such information as deemed necessary to effectively and efficiently
respond to an alarm at the premises. Such permit shall be obtained
by all owners of commercial use premises by such date as shall be
fixed by resolution by the Village Board of Trustees and in any event
each device or system is to be installed or modified.
[Amended 3-19-2019 by L.L. No. 6-2019]
License fees for a business license, alarm agent
license and owner's or lessee's permit shall be such as shall be fixed
from time to time by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The fee schedule is on file
in the Village offices.
A license issued under this chapter may be suspended
or revoked by the licensing authority after notice and hearing by
the licensing authority for the violation of any of the provisions
of this chapter or of any regulation or regulations promulgated by
the licensing authority pursuant to this chapter, and any license
or identification card issued hereunder shall be surrendered immediately
to the licensing authority upon such suspension or revocation. No
part of a license fee shall be refunded when a license is suspended
or revoked. Any applicant whose application for a license or permit
has been denied or any business license alarm agent, owner or lessee
whose license has been suspended or revoked by the licensing authority
may appeal such denial, suspension or revocation, in writing, to the
Board of Trustees within 30 days after the date of denial or of the
notice of suspension or revocation and may appear before such Board
of Trustees at a time and place to be determined by the Board of Trustees
in support of his or its contention that the license should not have
been denied, suspended or revoked. The decision of the Board of Trustees
shall be final.
Every business, firm, corporation or other commercial
entity conducting the business of owning, operating, installing, leasing
or selling alarm devices within the Village of Monroe shall maintain
complete and accurate records of all installations of alarm systems
in the Village of Monroe and shall produce such records for inspection
by the licensing authority upon demand.
A.
Limitation. No alarm device shall be connected to
or use any telephone line connected to police headquarters or fire
reporting numbers, except those lines authorized by the licensing
authority. The owner and licensee of any such alarm device which is
connected, either directly or indirectly, to police headquarters or
fire reporting numbers by a telephone line which has not been authorized
for use for such purpose as aforesaid, on and after such date as shall
be fixed by resolution of the Village Board of Trustees, shall be
in violation of this chapter and be subject to the penalty provisions
hereof.
B.
Intentional false alarm. It shall be a violation of
this chapter to intentionally cause a false, alarm and any person
who does intentionally cause a false alarm shall be subject to the
penalty provisions hereof.
C.
Charges for false alarms.
(1)
Any owner or lessee of property having an alarm device
or system of alarm devices on his or its premises and any user of
services or equipment furnished by a licensee under this chapter shall
pay to the village a charge for each and every false alarm to which
the Police or Fire Department responds as follows.
(2)
The charges for each calendar year shall be as follows: for the first
two false alarms, no charge; for the third and all subsequent false
alarms within each calendar year shall be established by resolution
of the Village Board of Trustees and modified from time to time in
the same manner.
[Amended 3-19-2019 by L.L. No. 6-2019]
(3)
Such charges shall be paid to the Village Treasurer.
Failure to pay any such charges shall subject such owner, lessee or
user to the penalty provisions of this chapter.
D.
Installation and maintenance. The installation and
maintenance of alarm devices permitted by this chapter, including
the connection to police or fire headquarters, shall be made at no
cost to the village. The owner or lessee shall be responsible for
the maintenance and service of his or its alarm device equipment and
shall be responsible for all malfunctions of his or its equipment.
E.
Change of location. If the location of police or fire
headquarters should be changed at any time, the village shall not
be responsible for any expense incurred by the owner or lessee or
business licensee or alarm agent for moving alarm systems or reconnecting
such systems to the relocated police or fire headquarters.
F.
Removal of unlawful equipment. In addition to any
other remedy provided by law, the licensing authority, whenever it
shall have knowledge of the use of any alarm device, cabinet or attachment
or telephone terminal which is not operated or maintained in accordance
with the provisions of this chapter, and after notice and hearing
by the licensing authority, may order the removal of the same from
police or fire headquarters, and it shall be unlawful to disobey such
order.
G.
Any false alarm to which the Police or Fire Department
responds brought about through a telephone answering service shall
be attributable to the owner or lessee of the property activating
such alarm.
[Amended 7-6-1999 by L.L. No. 3-1999]
Except as stated in § 64-8C herein, any person, firm or corporation who does not pay any charge or fee established in this chapter or who violates any provision of this chapter shall be subject to a fine as set forth in Chapter 1, Article II, General Penalty, § 1-14. A separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each day during which a violation occurs or is committed.
