Alarm Ordinance

Rocky River, OH Alarm System Ordinance

CHAPTER 701

701.01  PURPOSE AND DEFINITIONS.

(a) Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to protect persons and property in the City, to prevent misuse of emergency services, and to provide minimum standards and regulations applicable to alarm business, alarm systems and alarm users as defined in this section. This chapter does not supersede or replace Section of the Codified Ordinances entitled "Making False Alarms".

(b) Definitions. For the purpose of this chapter, the following words, terms, phrases, and their derivations shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning.

"Alarm administrator" means the employee of the Fire and/or Police Department of the City whose responsibility is to coordinate the administration and documentation of alarm systems as it relates to the effective enforcement of the provisions of this chapter.

"Alarm business" means the business by any individual, partnership, corporation or other entity selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving or installing or monitoring any alarm system or causing to be sold leased, maintained, serviced, repaired, altered, replaced, moved or installed or monitored any alarm system in or on any building, structure or facility.

"Alarm malfunction" means an alarm system activation resulting from  windstorm or other inclement weather condition, power outage or any electrical or mechanical failure, not resulting from improperly installed, operated, or maintained equipment.

"Alarm system" means any device or system that upon activation emits, transmits, or relays a signal intended to be used to summon, or that would reasonably be expected to summon, or result in the summoning of police, fire or emergency medical service of the City. "Alarm system" does not include:  (A.) An alarm installed on a vehicle, boat, boat trailer, house trailer, recreation vehicle, unless the vehicle is permanently located at a site; nor (B) Alarm systems not designed or intended to alert fire or law enforcement agencies or others outside the protected building, structure, or facility, but which are designed solely to alert the inhabitants, security personnel, or others directly connected with or employed by the owner or operator of the protected building, structure or facility.

"Alarm user" means the person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, or any other entity in control of a building, structure, facility, or any portion thereof, where an alarm system is located.

"Automatic dialing device" means a device which is interconnected to a telephone line and is programmed to select a predetermined telephone number and transmit by voice a message or coded signal intended to elicit a response.

"Combination alarm system" means an alarm system in which fire alarm system components are used, in whole or in part, in common with a non-fire signaling system.

"False alarm" means an alarm system signal or message eliciting an urgent response by the Fire and/or Police Department when no evidence of burglary, fire, medical emergency, smoke, unauthorized intrusion, vandalism, or a situation requiring such response does not exist. An alarm that was activated because of testing or repair shall not be considered as a false alarm if prior notification was given the day of testing or repair to the Fire and/or Police Department.

"Fire alarm system" means a system consisting of components and circuits arranged to monitor and annunciate the status of fire alarm or supervisory signal-initiating devices and to initiate the appropriate response to those signals.

"Fire protection system" means devices, equipment and systems or combinations of systems used to detect a fire, activate an alarm, extinguish or control a fire, control or manage smoke and products of a fire or any combination thereof.         

701.02  AUTHORITY TO INSTALL ALARMS; REGISTRATION; PERMITS REQUIRED.

(a) Any residence or business located within the City, upon compliance with this section, may be equipped with an alarm system for the purpose of detecting and signaling the presence of a fire, unauthorized intrusion, or other activity requiring urgent attention, to which the Fire and/or Police Department is expected to respond. Existing installations shall be subject to the requirements of this chapter.

(b) No alarm business shall install any alarm referred to in this chapter without first obtaining a certificate of registration from the Building Commissioner. See Chapter of the Codified Ordinances. No persons or alarm businesses shall service, test, repair or install for profit any fire protection equipment or system without a certificate issued by the State Fire Marshal as required in Ohio Revised Code 3737.65.

(c) A permit shall be required for the installation of an alarm system as required in the Building Code, Residential Code, Fire Prevention Code and the Codified Ordinances of the City, and if the alarm system includes; smoke detectors, heat detectors, flame detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, connection to a fire suppression system, occupant notification, and/or is a household fire alarm system. See Section (k) of the Codified Ordinances.

(d) No person shall install, operate or allow on the premises under his control the operation of an alarm system unless such person first obtains a valid alarm user permit. If a single alarm system serves more than one premises and emits a distinct signal for each premises served, a separate alarm user permit must be obtained for each premises served by the alarm system. Exceptions: (1) Emergency medical alarms which are not part of a combination alarm system. (2) Fire alarm systems or household fire alarm system which are not part of a combination alarm system. 

701.03  ALARM USER PERMIT; APPLICATION; FEES.

(a) Applications for an alarm user permit shall be made on forms provided by the Alarm Administrator. The application shall include but is not limited to; the name, address and telephone number of the property to be serviced by the alarm system, the name, address and telephone number of the owner of the property and/or occupant in control of the property alarm system, and central station phone number of applicant's alarm company, if any.

(b) Each application for an alarm user permit shall provide at least one other name and telephone number of a person to be contacted in an emergency when the user is unavailable. That person listed shall be able to receive notification at any time, come to the alarm site within half an hour after receiving a request to do so and grant access to the alarm site and deactivate the alarm system if such becomes necessary.

(c) Each holder of an alarm user permit shall, within ten (10) days of any change of the information on the alarm user registration application, or any material change in the information previously submitted with respect to such alarm system, file an application supplement containing accurate, current information with respect to the data required by the Alarm administrator.

(d) An initial permit fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) shall be charged for each alarm system, which shall be renewed every two (2) years at the rate of twenty five dollars ($25.00) payable on or before January 31st of the renewal year. Alarm user permits are personal to the holder and are not transferable, each new owner and/or occupant shall purchase an alarm user permit for their premises alarm system.

(e) No person, organization or business shall remove or otherwise terminate an alarm system in this City without notifying the Alarm Administrator in writing before the removal or termination. Such notice shall include the address of the removed or terminated system, the type of alarm system and the name and address of the person, organization or business that shall perform such removal or termination. Such notice shall be served to the Alarm Administrator within thirty days (30) of the removal or termination of the given alarm system.

(f) The information contained in an alarm user permit application shall be securely maintained and restricted to inspection by the Alarm Administrator.  (Ord. 24-14. Passed 6-9-14.)

701.04  SYSTEM STANDARDS, GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.

(a) All equipment used in installations shall meet the applicable standards of Underwriters Laboratories of the United States (UL), Factory Mutual (FM), or the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and other recognized industry standards and installed in accordance with applicable codes, the manufacturer's installation and application instructions. An applicant may be required to submit evidence of the reliability and suitability of the equipment to be installed.

(b) All alarm systems installed shall follow all applicable Building Code, Fire Code, Residential Code, Property Maintenance Code, and the Codified Ordinances, as adopted by the City and all applicable permits and registrations under the Building Code, Residential Code, Fire Code and the Codified Ordinances of the City must be obtained for all installations.

(c) Local alarms which, when activated, sound a horn, bell, buzzer or other type of audible alarm, are not permitted if the sound exceeds sixty-five (65) decibels at any location outside the property line of the premises being served. A local alarm system shall have a thirty (30) minute shut-off.

(d) No person shall use or permit the use of any automatic dialing device which automatically selects any telephone line or number leading into the communication center of the Fire or Police Department, or any of the offices of the City, and then transmits any pre recorded message or signal.

(e) Combination alarm systems are not permitted where the code requires a fire alarm system or where fire protection systems are required to be monitored by a supervising station. Private residential, one-, two- and three-family dwelling alarm systems are exempt from this restriction.

(f) Every alarm business selling, leasing or furnishing to any user an alarm system which is installed on premises located in the City, shall furnish the user with instructions that provide information to enable such user to operate and maintain the alarm system properly, and to obtain service for the alarm system at any time.

(g) All equipment, the use or installation of which, is subject to this chapter, shall be maintained in good operating condition by the owner or lessee of the alarm system to assure reliability of operation.

(h) For violation of this section, for failure to properly maintain an installation or when the number of false alarms for any installation equals ten (10) in any twelve (12) month period, the Alarm Administrator shall serve written notice upon the alarm user permit holder of intent to revoke their permit. Such notice shall be given not less than ten (10) business days prior to revocation. Such notice shall state the right of the permit holder to appeal to the Safety-Service Director. If an appeal is filed in writing, the Director shall hold a hearing on the matter and shall render a decision on the basis of the facts presented. The Director's decision shall be final. In the event no appeal is filed, the Alarm Administrator shall transmit all pertinent information to the Director for approval to revoke the alarm user permit. 

701.05  FALSE ALARMS PROHIBITED; FEES.

(a) No person shall intentionally activate an alarm system for any purpose other than an emergency of the kind for which the alarm system was designated to give notice. However, it shall be an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the alarm system was sounded solely for the purpose of testing the alarm and the person who tested the alarm took reasonable precautions, as determined by the Alarm Administrator, to avoid any request being made to the Fire or Police Department to respond to such alarm.

(b) Each false alarm response shall constitute a separate false alarm. Any response to a false alarm to a City address by another agency because of mutual aid or automatic response agreements shall constitute a false alarm.

(c) Whenever any City officer or employee responds to an alarm which is determined by the City to be a false alarm, the permit holder, occupant in control of the premises and/or owner of the premises where such alarm system is maintained shall be charged and shall pay to the City a false alarm response fee as follows: 

1. User Permit Alarm System, Medical Alarm System or Fire Alarm System as required by Building Code. [A.] The first three (3) false alarms will not be charged. [B.] The fourth (4th), fifth (5th) and sixth (6th) false alarm will be billed at fifty dollars ($50.00) each. [C.] The seventh (7th) false alarm and those thereafter will be billed at seventy-five dollars ($75.00) each. 
2. Non-User Permit Alarm System. [A.] For the first false alarm the user will receive a notice to obtain an Alarm User Permit for the alarm system. [B.] The second (2nd) and third (3rd) false alarm will be billed at seventy-five dollars ($75.00) each and the user will receive a notice to obtain an Alarm User Permit for the alarm system. [C.] The fourth (4th) false alarm and those thereafter will be billed at one hundred dollars ($100.00) each and the user will receive a notice to obtain an Alarm User Permit for the alarm system.

(d) Notwithstanding the fee to be assessed as set forth above, there shall be no charge for a false alarm to which there is no response by the Fire or Police Department, or when the cause has been proven to be an alarm malfunction as defined within this Chapter.

(e) If any of the fees for false alarms imposed herein are not paid upon receipt of the invoice for the same, or within thirty (30) days thereafter, such fees shall be referred to the Law Director for filing in civil court. 

701.06  LIABILITY OF CITY.

The issuance, non-issuance or cancellation of any registrations or permits in conjunction with this Chapter and any act or omission of the City and/or its agents and employees shall not constitute acceptance by the City of any liability whatsoever to maintain any alarm systems and related equipment, to answer alarms, or for anything in connection therewith. 

701.07  EXEMPTIONS.

The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any alarm system installed on property owned and occupied by any city, county, state or federal government agency or office, unless there is a pattern of misuse/abuse of said alarm. 

701.99  PENALTY.

Whoever violates any provision of this Chapter shall be guilty of a minor misdemeanor for the first offense. Whoever violates any provision of this Chapter shall be guilty of a fourth degree misdemeanor for the second offense or subsequent offenses. 

(Ord. 24-14. Passed 6-9-14.)