Subd. 1. Purpose. The purpose of this section is to ensure the availability of the city's public safety services for appropriate public safety needs to encourage alarm users to adequately maintain and utilize alarm systems.
Subd. 2. Definitions. For purposes of this section the following terms have the following meanings:
A. “Alarm System.” An alarm installation designed to be used for the prevention or detection of burglary, elevator malfunction, robbery, or fire and located in or on a building, structure or facility.
B. “Alarm User.” The legal entity in control of any building, structure, or facility wherein or whereon an alarm system is located.
C. “False Alarm.” An alarm signal eliciting a response by personnel of the city's law enforcement agency or Fire Department when a situation requiring a response does not, in fact, exist, and which is caused by the activation of an alarm system through mechanical failure, improper maintenance of the alarm system or the building, structure, or facility, movement, alarm malfunction, improper installation or the inadvertence of the alarm user or its employees, family or agents. A false alarm does not include an alarm caused by climatic conditions such as tornados, thunderstorms, utility line mishaps, violent conditions of nature, or any other conditions which are clearly beyond the control of the alarm manufacturer, installer or user.
D. “Law Enforcement Agency.” An agency or person designated by the City Administrator.
Subd. 3. False Alarm Reports. The City Administrator shall cause the law enforcement agency to report all false alarms occurring within the city. The report shall include the identification of the alarm user and the date, time and location of the false alarm.
Subd. 4. User Fees. An alarm user, whose alarm system has resulted in the reporting of three or more false alarms in a rolling 12 month period because of the operation of a burglar, elevator, robber, or fire alarm, shall be charged user fees as established by City Council resolution.
Subd. 5. Notice. Upon notice of the first false alarm report for a particular alarm system, the City Administrator or his/her designee shall, by regular mail, notify the alarm user that a false alarm has been reported. The notice shall include a copy of the city's false alarm regulations. After receipt of the second and subsequent false alarm reports for a particular alarm system, the law enforcement center shall issue a citation for violation of this section.
Subd. 6. Collection of Delinquent Alarm Fees. If there are delinquent amounts that remain unpaid after the payment date specified in the notice, an administrative charge as established by City Council resolution shall be assessed on these invoices, and this charge along with the delinquent alarm fee shall be certified by the City Council to the Redwood County Department of Property Taxes for collection with taxes due against the property on which the alarm system is located.
Subd. 7. Excessive Alarm Report. When the operation of an alarm system has resulted in six or more false alarms within a rolling 12 month period, the city by written notice shall request the alarm user to provide the city with a written report indicating the actions taken or to be taken within a definite time period by the alarm user to discover and eliminate the cause of the false alarms. Said report is to be completed and submitted to the city within 15 days of the date of the city's written notice. Failure to submit the written report within the time limits provided by the City Administrator or his/her designee shall be considered a violation of this section.
Subd. 8. Hazard, Misdemeanor. In the case of fire alarms, failure to comply with the requirements of an order of the Fire Marshal shall make the building a fire hazard and shall make the building in relation to existing use a hazard to safety or health or public welfare. Any owner or person who shall permit such a hazard to exist on premises under his or her control or who shall fail to take immediate action to abate such a hazard when notified to do so by the Fire Marshal, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment for a period of not more than 90 days, or both.
Subd. 9. Confidentiality. All information submitted in compliance with this chapter shall be held in confidence and shall be deemed a confidential report exempt from discovery to the extent permitted by law. Subject to the requirements of confidentiality, the City Administrator or his/her designee shall develop and maintain statistics for the purpose of ongoing alarm system evaluation.
(Ord. 54, Fourth Series, passed 12-6-2016)