HomeMy WebLinkAbout5224 ORDINANCE NO. 5 2 2 4
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AUBURN,
WASHINGTON, REPEALING AUBURN CITY CODE CHAPTER 15.56
ENTITLED "INTRUSION ALARMS" AND ENACTING A NEW AUBURN CITY
CODE CHAPTER 15.56 ENTITLED "ALARM SYSTEMS" WHICH REQUIRES
REGISTRATION, ESTABLISHES FEES; PROVIDES FINES FOR
EXCESSIVE FALSE ALARMS; PROVIDES FOR PUNISHMENT OF
VIOLATIONS; AND ESTABLISHES A SYSTEM OF ADMINISTRATION.
WHEREAS, Auburn City Code chapter 15.56 entitled "Intrusion Alarms"
is repealed; and
WHEREAS, a new Auburn City Code Chapter 15.56 entitled "Alarm
Systems" which requires registration, establishes fees, provides fines for
excessive false alarms, provides punishment of violations and establishes a
system of administration is set forth in the attached Exhibit "A" entitled "Alarm
Systems" which by this reference is herein incorporated; and
WHEREAS, the Auburn City Council finds that this ordinance is in the
interest of the public health, safety and welfare; and
WHEREAS, the Auburn City Council finds that this ordinance will
encourage alarm users and alarm businesses to assume increased
responsibility for maintaining the mechanical reliability and the proper use of
alarm systems to prevent unnecessary police emergency response to false
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August 5, 1999
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alarms and thereby protect the emergency response capability 'of the Auburn
Police from misuse; and
WHEREAS, the information provided on the registration application will
give public safety personnel important records on alarm user emergency
contacts, alarm businesses and locations of alarm systems.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AUBURN,
KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON DO ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
Section t. Purpose. Auburn City Code Chapter 15.56 entitled
"Intrusion Alarms" is hereby repealed and a new chapter 15.56 entitled "Alarm
Systems" is adopted to enact requirements for registration, establish fees,
provide for fines false alarm fines, provides for punishment of violations and
establishes a system of administration as set forth in "Exhibit "A" attached
hereto and incorporated herein by this reference.
Section 2. Constitutionality or Invalidity. If any section, subsection,
clause or phase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or
unconstitutional, such invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity
or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this Ordinance, as it is being
hereby expressly declared that this Ordinance and each section, subsection,
sentence, clause and phrase hereof would have been prepared, proposed,
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August 5, 1999
Page 2
adopted and approved and ratified irrespective of the fact that any one or more
section, subsection, sentence, clause or phase be declared invalid or
unconstitutional.
Section 3. Effective Date. This ordinance shall be effective January 1,
2000.
INTRODUCED: August 16, 1999
PASSED: August 16, 1999
APPROVED: August 16, 1999
CHARLES A. BOOTH
MAYOR
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August5,1999
Page 3
ATTEST:
City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Michael J. R~;ynolds,
City Attorney
PUBLISHED:
O~inance No. 5224
August5,1999
Page 4
EXHIBIT 'A'
Chapter 15.56
ALARM SYSTEMS
Sections:
15.56.010 Definitions.
15.56.020 Alarm users registration required.
15.56.030 Service charges.
15.56.040 Additional duties of alarm user.
15.56.050 Alarm business duties,
15,56.060 Non-permitted system and uses.
15.56.070 Special registrations.
15.56.080 Administrative hearing,
15.56.090 Violations - penalties.
15.56.010 Definitions.
Unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires, terms defined
herein shall have the following meanings when used in this chapter:
A. Alarm Business. The business by any individual, partnership,
corporation, or other entity of selling, leasing, maintaining, monitoring,
servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving or installing any alarm system or
causing to be sold, leased, maintained, serviced, repaired, altered, replaced,
moved or installed any alarm system on real property.
B. Alarm System. Any system, device or mechanism which,
when activated, transmits a telephone message to a private monitoring
company or some other number, or emits an audible or visible signal that can
be heard or seen by persons outside the protected premises, or transmits a
signal' beyond the premises in some other fashion, except any system, device
or mechanism primarily protecting a motor vehicle, or a medical alarm.
C. Alarm User. The person, firm, partnership, association,
corporation, company, or organization of any kind to whom a registration is
required under this chapter.
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EXHIBIT 'A'
D. Automatic Dialing Device. A device that is interconnected to a
telephone line and is programmed to select a predetermined telephone number
and transmit by voice message or code signal an emergency message
indicating a need for emergency response. Such a device is an alarm system.
E. Burglary Alarm System. An alarm system designed or used for
detection and reporting of an unauthorized entry or attempted unauthorized
entry upon real property protected by the system.
F. Chief of Police. The Chief of the City of Auburn Police
Department.
G. Department. The City of Auburn Police Department.
H. False Alarm. The activation of any burglary and/or robbery alarm
system when no crime is being committed or attempted on the premises. An
alarm shall be presumed to be false if the police officers responding do not
locate any evidence of an intrusion or commission of an unlawful act or
emergency on the premises which might have caused the alarm to sound, but
does not include alarms caused by violent conditions of nature or other
extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject to control by the alarm
business operator or alarm user.
I. Interconnect. To connect an alarm system including an automatic
dialing device to a telephone line, either directly or through a mechanical device
that utilizes a telephone, for the purpose of using the telephone line to transmit
a message upon the activation of the alarm system.
J. Registration Year. January 1 to and including December 31.
K. Premises. Any area and any portion of any area protected by
an alarm system.
L. Robbery Alarm System. An alarm system designed or used for
alerting others of a robbery or other crime in progress which involves potential
serious bodily injury or death.
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EXHIBIT 'A'
M. System Subscriber. Person, corporation, firm, partnership,
association, company, organization or other business entity who purchased or
contracted for any alarm system.
N. Panic/Trouble Alarm. An alarm system designed or used for
alerting police of the need for immediate assistance or aid in order to avoid
injury or serious bodily harm.
O. Verification. An independent method of determining that a signal
from an automatic alarm system reflects a need for immediate police assistance
or investigation.
15.56.020 Alarm users registration required.
A. Beginning January 1, 2000, no person shall operate or use an
alarm system on any premises within the City of Auburn, under that person's
control, without first having obtained from the Police Department, a separate
registration for each premises protected by an alarm system.
B. The police department may not respond to any alarm system for
which a registration has not first been obtained.
C. For the purposes of this section, a person shall be deemed to be
an operator or user of an alarm system if:
(1) The person controls both the alarm system and the
premises upon which it is installed, or
(2) The person controls the premises and is the subscriber,
client or tenant of the system subscriber, or
(3) The person is the system subscriber or alarm user.
D. All persons required to obtain a registration must complete a
registration application form that is provided by the Police Department.
Information required to be provided on the registration application'form
includes, but is not limited to:
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EXHIBIT 'A'
(1) Subscriber's and/or alarm users name, address and
telephone number(s);
(2) Names and telephone numbers of three (3) additional
persons who will respond in the event of alarm activation in the absence of the
alarm user and said persons will provide access to premise and be able to
deactivate alarm, or said persons will provide information on who to contact for
access;
(3) The name(s) of the alarm installation business and alarm
monitoring business responsible for regular maintenance and monitoring;
(4) The information required in paragraph 3 of this subsection
shall not apply to alarms which are installed by the homeowner/tenant;
(5) The information required in paragraph 3 of this subsection
shall not apply to (a) existing alarms or (b) alarms which are installed in
multiple-tenant buildings.
E. Failure to complete the required information will result in
automatic denial of the registration.
F. Each registration shall be given a number which shall not be
transferable.
G. Completed applications for an alarm user's registration and a fee
as set forth in Section 3 shall be filed with the Police Department, except that
no fee shall be charged for alarms installed prior to enactment of this chapter if
a registration application for such existing alarm system is filed within prior to
January, 2000.
H. A penalty fee as set forth in the Fee Resolution will be charged, in
addition to the fee provided in subsection (G), to a user who fails to obtain a
registration within thirty (30) days after the system becomes operative, or to a
current user who fails to obtain a registration.
I. Registration fees shall be payable to the City of Auburn and
deposited into the City's General Fund.
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J. Any person who owns, operates, or possesses any alarm system
within the City of Auburn, which does not conform to the requirements of this
chapter, shall disconnect that alarm and render it inoperable or alter it in
accordance with this chapter no later than 60 days after enactment of this
chapter.
K. The following shall be required to obtain a registration under this
article, but shall not be required to pay any fee:
(1) Businesses which are non-profit organizations, including
but not limited to religious, civic, charitable, benevolent, non-profit, 'cultural,
governmental or youth organizations.
L. Alarm user shall notify police department, within ten (10) days, of
any change of information from that contained on the registration application.
15.56.030 Service charges.
A. Service charges will be assessed by the City for excessive false
alarms during the registration year as follows:
Type of Fee Amount
First, second, and third false alarms in a year No charge
(January I through December 31)
Fourth and Fifth false alarms in a year $50 each
(January I through December 31)
Sixth false alarm and successive false alarms in a year $100 each
(January 1 through December 31)
Registration Fee (one time fee) $15
Late registration fee penalty $50
Late false alarm payment penalty $25
Appeal hearing cancellation fee $10
B. The City shall notify the alarm user upon their third false alarm,
within a one year period, that fourth and subsequent false alarms will result in
fines. The City shall notify the alarm user and the alarm business by regular
mail of the fourth false alarm, the fine and the consequences of the failure to
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pay the fine. The Police Department-shall also inform the alarm user of the
right to appeal the validity of the false alarm determination, as provided in
Section 10. All fees are due within thirty (30) days of notice. If the service
charge has not been received in the City, and there is no appeal pending on
the validity of the false alarm, the City shall send the notice of service charge
along with a notice of late fees as set forth above. If payment is not received
within thirty (30) days of the day the notice of late fee was mailed, the City may
initiate the enforcement-of-penalties and/or begin the collection process.
15.56.040 Additional duties of alarm user.
A. The premises shall display the registration decal at or near the
main entrance, which shall be clearly visible and readable from the exterior of
the premises.
B. The premises shall display the street address at or near the front
of the premises and at other places where access is available, such as from an
alley or parking lot. The street address shall be clearly visible and readable
from the exterior of the premises.
C. If requested to do so by the Department, the alarm user or his or
her designee shall respond to the premises following activation of an alarm
system for which a registration has been issued within a reasonable time, and
in any event, within one (1) hour after said notification.
15.56.050 Alarm business duties.
A. Every alarm system monitoring company engaging in business
activities in the City of Auburn shall:
(1) Be registered to do business in the City of Auburn.
(2) Submit standard user form instructions to the Police Chief.
If the Police Chief finds the instructions are incomplete, unclear, or inadequate,
the Police Chief may require the' alarm business to revise the instructions to
comply with Section 6 (A) (4) and then to distribute the revised instructions to
its alarm users.
(3) Provide the Police Chief information about the nature of its
property alarms, burglary alarms, robbery alarms and panic alarms; its method
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of monitoring; its program for preventing false alarms, and its method of
disconnecting audible alarms.
(4) Furnish the user with instructions that provide information
to enable the user to operate the alarm system at any time. The alarm business
shall also inform each alarm user of the requirement to obtain a registration and
where it can be obtained.
(5) Establish a process for alarm verification. The verification
process shall not take more than five (5) minutes, calculated from the time that
the alarm signal has been accepted by the alarm business monitoring the
system, until a decision is made whether to call for a police dispatch. The
means of verification may include one or more of the following:
(a) The establishment of voice communication with an
authorized person at or near the premises who may indicate whether or not
need for immediate police assistance or investigation exists;
(b) A feature that permits the alarm system user or a
person authorized by the user to send a special signal to the alarm system
monitoring company that will cancel an alarm immediately after it has been sent
and prevent the monitoring company calling for a police dispatch;
(c) The installation of a video system that provides the
alarm system monitoring company when the signal is received with the ability to
ascertain that activity is occurring which warrants immediate police assistance
or investigation;
(d) A confirmation that a signal reflects a need for
immediate police. assistance or investigation either by the alarm system user, or
a person at or near the premises before dispatching police; or
(e) An alternate system that the Police Chief determines
has, or is likely to have, a high degree of reliability.
6. Coordinate with the Department's Communication Center
to develop a process to cancel an alarm dispatch that is consistent with the
Communication Center's standard operating procedures.
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7. Provide the Departmenrs Communication Center when
requesting an alarm response with the registration number for that premise,
and the Department need not respond if the registration number is not
provided.
15.56.060 Non-permitted system and uses.
A. No person shall operate or use an alarm system which emits an
audible sound where such emission does not automatically cease within fifteen
(15) minutes. Nothing in this section shall limit the duration of a fire or other
evacuation alarm during a bona fide emergency when the sound may assist in
saving life or avoiding injury.
B. No person shall use an alarm system to protect more than one (1)
business and/or private residence without receiving a separate registration for
each business and/or private residence to be protected.
C. No person shall operate or use any alarm system for which the
registration has been revoked.
D. No person shall operate or use any alarm system which
automatically dials the Auburn Police Department or Valley Communication
Center (911) directly and delivers a prerecorded message.
E. No person shall use an alarm system covering doors and
windows that transmits a "panic Alarm" notification.
15.56.070 Special registrations.
A. An alarm user required by federal, state, county or municipal law,
regulation, rule or ordinance to install, maintain and operate an alarm system
shall be subject to the alarm system regulations, provided:
(1) A registration shall be designated a Special Alarm User's
Registration.
(2) A Special Alarm User's Registration for a system that has
five (5) false alarms in a registration year Shall not be subject to the no
response procedure and shall pay the penalty fees and service charges.
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B. An alarm user that is a governmental political unit shall be subject
to this chapter; but a registration shall be issued without payment of a fee and
shall not be subject to service charges or the imposition of any penalty provided
herein.
15.56.080 Administrative hearing.
A. An alarm user may appeal the validity of a false alarm
determination to the Police Chief. The appeal shall be in writing and shall be
requested within ten (10) days of the notice of penalty received from the City
Finance Department. Failure to contest the false alarm determination in the
required time period results in a conclusive presumption for all purposes that
the alarm was false.
B. If a hearing is requested, written notice of the time and place of
the hearing shall be served on the user by the Police Chief, by Certified Mail, at
least ten (10) days prior to the date set for the hearing, which shall not be more
than twenty-one (21) nor less than ten (10) days after the filing of the request
for hearing.
C. The hearing shall be before the Police Chief. The Police Chief
may appoint another person to be an Administrative Hearing Officer to hear the
appeals and to render judgment. The alarm user and the Police Chief shall
have the right to present written and oral evidence. If the Police Chief
determines that the false 'alarms alleged have occurred in a registration year,
the Police Chief may issue written findings waiving, expunging or entering a
false alarm designation on an alarm user's record. If false alarm designations
are entered on the alarm user's record, the Finance Department shall pursue
the collection of the penalty fines. If the civil penalty is not found to be proper,
then the alarm user shall bear no costs.
D. If a hearing is canceled more than ten (10) days after its request,
then a cancellation fee as set forth in the Fee Resolution must be paid in
addition to the amount of the civil infraction.
E. In accordance with RCW 46.55.240 (1) (d), a decision made by an
Administrative Hearing Officer may be appealed to the King County District
Court for final judgment.
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15.56.090 Violations - Penalties.
In ~ddition to the penalties and regulations provided herein, who violates
any provisions of this chapter shall be found to have committed a Class I civil
infraction.
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