A. All users of remotely activated fire, robbery, smoke, burglar, intrusion, panic, and other alarms to which the City of Batavia responds with emergency services shall properly maintain said system in good repair and working order at all times. Fire alarm and sprinkler systems shall comply and conform to Fire Code specifications, specifically 1999 National Fire Protection Association 72.
B. All remotely activated alarm users within the City of Batavia shall obtain a City of Batavia alarm permit. The permit shall be free of charge and shall be renewed annually. Failure to obtain or to operate an alarm system without a valid permit shall be a violation of this section and result in a fine as described in subsection E of this section. Alarm permits shall not be transferable between users.
C. No user or authorized agent shall permit or allow the fire, robbery, burglary, intrusion, and/or panic alarm system to communicate or transmit a false alarm.
D. A false alarm is a remotely activated alarm of any type that is allowed to intentionally or negligently operate in such a manner as to result in an unnecessary response by the City of Batavia to the alarm location. The permit holder/user of any such alarm which gives a false alarm shall be subject to fines as described in subsection E of this section. The following shall not be considered to be false alarms:
1. Any alarm transmitted in the first thirty (30) days after the initial installation of a protection system.
2. Food burned in or on approved cooking appliances.
3. Smoke infiltrating from another location, provided the source of the smoke is not under the control of the alarm user.
4. A fire causing structural damage to the protected premises.
5. Earthquakes, tornadoes, flooding, lightning, or any environmental, act of God, or weather related cause.
6. Verified telephone line malfunctions or service interruptions where the cause is not under the control or responsibility of the owner/occupant.
7. Verified electrical service malfunctions or service interruptions, where the cause is not under the control or responsibility of the owner/occupant.
8. Verified plumbing malfunctions, where the cause is not under the control or responsibility of the owner/occupant.
9. Malicious vandalism caused by person(s) not under the control of the alarm user, provided the user has taken appropriate steps to protect the system from vandalism.
10. Verified periodic official testing of the alarm system.
11. Verified event or perceived event for which the alarm has purpose.
E. The penalty for an improper alarm transmission shall be as determined in subsection F of this section. Any one (1) incident shall be determined by the City to be either an improper police or fire alarm transmission, and each type shall be monitored separately for purposes of determining multiple violations. Fines will increase dependent upon the number of improper transmissions of each type within a rolling twelve (12) month period.
F. Penalties:
No valid permit | $200.00 |
First and second false alarm | No fines assessed. Written notification of false alarm response to be made to owner/occupant |
Third false alarm | $ 50.00 fine |
Fourth false alarm | 100.00 fine |
Fifth to ninth false alarm | $200.00 fine per false alarm |
Tenth or more false alarms | $300.00 fine per false alarm |
G. The alarm user shall have the opportunity within fifteen (15) days from the date of notice of violation invoice to submit a report or meet with the Chief of Police or Fire Chief or their designated representatives for the purpose of showing cause as to whether circumstances exist under this section to warrant voiding of the false alarm recordation and associated fines. The respective chief shall review the alarm user's report and/or meet with the alarm user, and may exercise the discretion to void the notice of violation if appropriate under this section.
H. False alarm violations shall be prosecuted through the City's local adjudicatory process. Any assessed fines not paid to the City of Batavia within the time ordered through the local adjudicatory process (and not appealed) will be subject to normal City of Batavia collection procedures. (Ord. 09-25, 7-6-2009)