ARTICLE 8.07 EMERGENCY REPORTING EQUIPMENT AND PROCEDURES
Sec. 8.07.001 Definitions
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the respective meanings ascribed to them:
Alarm Notification. A notification intended to summon the police or fire department, which is designed either to be initiated purposely by a person or by an alarm system that responds to a stimulus characteristic of unauthorized intrusion or fire.
Alarm Site. A single building, address, or location served by an alarm system or systems that is under the control of one (1) owner.
Alarm System. A device or system that emits, transmits, or relays a signal intended to summon, or that would reasonably be expected to summon, police or fire services of the city, including, but not limited to, local alarms. Alarm system does not include:
(1) An alarm installed on a vehicle unless the vehicle is permanently located at a site; or
(2) An alarm designed to alert only the inhabitants of a premises which does not have a local alarm.
Chief. The police chief.
False Alarm Notification. An alarm notification to the police or fire department, when the responding officer or fire department personnel finds no evidence of an attempted criminal offense or criminal offense or fire.
Local Alarm. An alarm system that emits a signal at an alarm site that is audible or visible from the exterior of a structure.
Permit Holder. The person designated in the application as required in section 8.07.002(c)(1) who is ultimately responsible for responding to alarms and giving access to the site and who is also responsible for proper maintenance and operation of the alarm system and payment of fees.
Person. An individual, corporation, partnership, association, organization, or similar entity.
Special Trunkline. A telephone line leading into the communications center of the police or fire department that is for the primary purpose of receiving emergency messages that originate from the automatic protection devices and are transmitted directly or through an intermediary.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-1)
Sec. 8.07.002 Permit required; application; transferability; false statements
(a) A person commits an offense if he operates or causes to be operated an alarm system without an alarm permit issued by the chief. A separate permit is required for each alarm site.
(b) Upon receipt of a properly completed application form, and a permit fee as set forth in the fee schedule in the appendix of this code for commercial permits or for residential permits, the chief shall issue an alarm permit to an applicant, unless the applicant has failed to pay a service fee assessed under section 8.07.011 or has had an alarm permit for the alarm site revoked, and the violation causing the revocation has not been corrected. The CISD shall be exempted from the payment of a permit fee, but shall be subject to all other fees, regulations, and requirements of this article.
(c) Each permit application must contain the following information:
(1) Name, address, and telephone number of the person who will be the permit holder and be responsible for the proper maintenance and operation of the alarm system and payment of fees assessed under this article;
(2) Classification of the alarm site as either residential or commercial;
(3) The purpose of the alarm system for each alarm system located at the alarm site (i.e., burglary, robbery, personal hostage, or fire);
(4) Other information required by the chief which is necessary for the enforcement of this article.
(d) Any false statement of a material matter made by an applicant for the purpose of obtaining an alarm permit shall be sufficient cause for revocation or refusal to issue a permit.
(e) An alarm permit cannot be transferred to another person. A permit holder shall inform the chief of any change that alters any information listed on the permit application within three (3) business days. No fee will be assessed for such changes.
(f) All alarm installations and installers must meet all state requirements as regulated by the state board of private investigators and private security agencies.
(g) All fees owed by an applicant must be paid before a permit may be issued or renewed.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-2)
Sec. 8.07.003 Permit duration and renewal
A permit is issued for one (1) calendar year or part thereof and must be renewed every year upon submission of an updated application and a renewal fee as set forth in the fee schedule in the appendix of this code. It is the responsibility of the permit holder to submit an application prior to the permit expiration date. Failure to renew the permit by January 31st will subject the permit holder to submit another application for an alarm permit and the fees associated with it. No license will extend beyond December 31 of each year. (1993 Code, sec. 22-3)
Sec. 8.07.004 Proper alarm system operation and maintenance
(a) A permit holder in control of an alarm system shall:
(1) Maintain premises containing an alarm system in a manner that ensures proper operation of the alarm system;
(2) Maintain the alarm system in a manner that will minimize false alarm notifications;
(3) Respond or cause a representative to respond within a reasonable period of time when notified by the city to repair or inactivate a malfunctioning alarm system, to provide access to the premises, or to provide security for the premises;
(4) Not manually activate an alarm for any reason other than an occurrence of an event that the alarm system was intended to report.
(b) A person in control of a local alarm shall adjust the mechanism or cause the alarm signal to sound for no longer than fifteen (15) minutes after being activated.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-4)
Sec. 8.07.005 Reporting of alarm signals
A permit holder in control of an alarm system shall not allow alarm signals to be reported through a relaying intermediary that does not comply with the requirements of this article and any rules and regulations promulgated by the chief. (1993 Code, sec. 22-5)
Sec. 8.07.006 Intermediaries engaged in the business of relaying alarm notifications
An intermediary who is engaged in the business of relaying alarm notifications to the city shall:
(1) Report alarms only over special trunklines designated by the chief;
(2) Communicate alarm notifications to the city in a manner and form determined by the chief;
(3) Be licensed by the state board of private investigators and private security agencies.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-6)
Sec. 8.07.007 Dial alarm devices with prerecorded voice messages prohibited
No person shall use, or cause or permit to be used, any alarm device which automatically selects a telephone trunkline of the police or fire department or any trunkline of the city, and then reproduces any prerecorded voice messages to report any robbery, burglary, fire or other emergency. (1993 Code, sec. 22-7)
Sec. 8.07.008 Alarm system operating instructions
A person in control of an alarm system shall maintain at each alarm site a complete set of written operating instructions for each alarm system; for a fire alarm system, such instructions shall be posted at the alarm panel at the alarm site. Special codes, combinations, or passwords must not be included in these instructions. (1993 Code, sec. 22-8)
Sec. 8.07.009 Alarm dispatch records
(a) The officer or fire department representative responding to an alarm call resulting from an attempted criminal offense, fire, or a false alarm shall record such information as necessary to permit the chief to maintain records, including, but not limited to, the following information:
(1) Identification of the permit holder;
(2) Identification of the alarm site;
(3) Arrival time and dispatch received time;
(4) Time of day and date;
(5) Weather conditions;
(6) Area and subarea;
(7) Name of permit holder’s representative on premises, if any.
(b) The responding police officer shall indicate on the dispatch record whether the notification was caused by a criminal offense or fire, or whether the notification was the result of a false alarm.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-9)
Sec. 8.07.010 System performance reviews
If there is reason to believe that an alarm system is not being used or maintained in a manner that ensures proper operation and suppresses false alarms, the chief may require a conference with an alarm permit holder and the individual or association responsible for maintenance of the alarm system to review circumstances of each false alarm. (1993 Code, sec. 22-10)
Sec. 8.07.011 Service fee
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), the holder of an alarm permit shall pay a service fee as set forth in the fee schedule in the appendix of this code for each police alarm notification in excess of six (6), and for each fire alarm notification in excess of three (3), emitted from an alarm site within a permit period.
(b) If the responding police officer or fire department official determines that an alarm notification was caused by an attempted criminal offense, criminal offense, or fire, no service fee will be assessed for that notification.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-11)
Sec. 8.07.012 Revocation of alarm permit
(a) The chief shall revoke an alarm permit if he determines that:
(1) There is a false statement of a material matter in the application for a permit;
(2) The permit holder has violated sections 8.07.003, 8.07.004, 8.07.005, 8.07.006, 8.07.007, or 8.07.008; or
(3) The permit holder has failed to make timely payment of a service fee assessed under section 8.07.011 or has an excessive number of false alarms as determined by the hearing officer.
(b) A person commits an offense if he operates an alarm system during the period in which his alarm permit is revoked.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-12)
Sec. 8.07.013 Appeal from denial, revocation of a permit or false alarm determination
(a) If the chief refuses to issue or renew a permit, or revokes a permit, he shall send to the applicant or permit holder by certified mail, return receipt requested, written notice of his action and a statement of the right to an appeal. However, notification by certified mail is not required for a false alarm determination and regular mailing shall be sufficient. The applicant or permit holder may appeal the decision of the chief to the city administrator by filing with the city administrator a written request for a hearing, setting forth reasons for the appeal, within ten (10) days after receipt of the notice from the chief. The filing of a request for an appeal hearing with the city administrator stays an action of the chief in revoking a permit until the city administrator or his or her designated representative makes a final decision. If a request for an appeal hearing is not made within the ten-day period, the action of the chief is final.
(b) The city administrator or his or her representative shall serve as hearing officer at an appeal and consider evidence by any interested person. The formal rules of evidence do not apply at an appeal hearing; the hearing officer shall make his or her decision on the basis of a preponderance of the evidence presented at the hearing. The hearing officer shall affirm, reverse, or modify the action of the chief. The decision of the hearing officer is final as to administrative remedies with the city.
(c) It shall further be the function of the hearing officer to recommend prosecution of any violations of this article to the municipal court prosecutor pursuant to the sanctions contained in section 8.07.015 of this article.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-13)
Sec. 8.07.014 Protection of financial institutions
(a) A financial institution required to have an alarm system pursuant to the provisions of the Bank Protection Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C., Section 1882) may install, with the permission of the chief, a signal line directly to the police department for the purpose of reporting burglaries and robberies. If such an arrangement is made, all other requirements of this article must be met. The financial institution shall execute a letter of agreement with the city permitting the installation of all necessary equipment on an indicator panel monitored in the communications division of the police department. The installation must be accomplished at the institution’s expense.
(b) The financial institution shall pay a monthly fee as set forth in the fee schedule in the appendix of this code for each indicator. The chief shall have the right, at reasonable times and upon oral notice, to inspect the alarm system at the alarm site and require necessary repairs or improvements. If the chief finds that the alarm system continually fails to operate properly or be operated properly, he may terminate the privilege to have equipment and indicators in the communications center of the police department and require prompt removal of the equipment at the expense of the financial institution.
(c) The financial institution, at its expense, shall make arrangements to provide service for the alarm system at the request of the financial institution or the chief on a twenty-four-hour basis, seven (7) days a week. In no event shall the city become liable for charges for repairs and maintenance.
(d) The financial institution may cancel its agreement with the city at any time by giving the city written notice through the chief and, at its own expense, removing its equipment and indicators from the monitor panel in the communications center.
(e) The chief may require any change, modernization, or consolidation of alarm signaling equipment that he or she deems advisable. In no event shall the city become liable for charges for these changes.
(f) Instead of a direct line, a financial institution may report burglaries and robberies by transmission through an alarm reporting service using a special trunkline designated by the chief.
(1993 Code, sec. 22-14)
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