[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Green Tree 12-4-1995 by Ord. No. 1299 (Ch. 1442 of the 1982 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Emergency medical services — See Ch. 40.
Fire Department — See Ch. 53.
Police Department — See Ch. 87.
Fire prevention — See Ch. 165.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms are defined as follows:
ALARM
A communication by any source, means or entity to the Green Tree Police Department, the Green Tree Volunteer Fire Company or the Green Tree emergency medical service, or to any dispatching service providing communication services to the Borough of Green Tree, indicating, alerting or attempting to advise of a crime, fire or other emergency situation warranting, requesting or directing that immediate action be taken by the Green Tree Police Department, the Green Tree Volunteer Fire Company and/or any medical rescue team or emergency services provided by the Borough of Green Tree, hereinafter collectively referred to as "providers of emergency services."
ALARM DEVICE
An electrical or electronic device designed to:
A. 
Transmit automatically an alarm, by wire, telephone, radio or other means, directly to a person or other entity who or which is instructed or requested to notify the Green Tree Police Department, the Green Tree Volunteer Fire Company, the Green Tree emergency medical service or any dispatch center providing such communication to the Borough of Green Tree or any medical rescue or paramedic teams of the Borough of Green Tree; or
B. 
Sound a general alarm to alert passersby or neighbors of an emergency situation, the purpose and intent of which is to bring the need for emergency services to the general populace and/or to notify any providers of emergency services in the Borough of Green Tree.
DIGITAL COMMUNICATOR
An electrical or electronic device which automatically transmits a digital message to the digital receiver of an entity whose purpose it is to receive an alarm and to transmit the same or to otherwise notify the providers of emergency services of the Borough of Green Tree of an emergency situation.
EMERGENCY DISPATCH CENTER
Any agency, entity or other authority designated by the Borough of Green Tree to receive and provide emergency communication services for the Borough of Green Tree.
FALSE ALARM
The response of any or all providers of emergency services resulting from the activation of an alarm and/or alarm device when a crime, fire or other emergency warranting immediate action has not, in fact, occurred. "False alarm" shall include all alarm signal activation incidents in which investigation by the appropriate emergency provider department reveals no evidence of the existence of an emergency condition or situation. However, those alarm signals that an investigation reveals to have been triggered by physical damage to the protected premises as a result of a hurricane, tornado, earthquake or other natural phenomena are excluded from the definition of "false alarm." The definition of "false alarm" shall, however, include any alarm generated, caused or otherwise contributed to by a malfunction of the alarm device.
INDIRECT ALARM DEVICE
An alarm device designed to transmit an alarm to a person or other entity whose purpose and intent is to notify any provider of emergency services in the Borough of Green Tree or any dispatch center providing communication services to the Borough of Green Tree, or otherwise to sound a general alarm to alert passersby or neighbors, as set forth in Subsection B in the definition of "alarm device" hereof.
INTENTIONAL FALSE ALARM
An alarm resulting from the intentional activation of an alarm device by an individual or other entity under circumstances where the individual or other entity had or has no reasonable basis to believe that a crime, fire or other emergency warranting immediate action by the providers of emergency services in the Borough of Green Tree has occurred or is in the process of occurring.
TELEPHONE DIALER ALARM DEVICE
A device designed to transmit automatically a recorded message over telephone lines to an emergency dispatch center or by indirect alarm device to an emergency dispatch center.
A. 
If an alarm device is designed to transmit a recorded message to the Borough of Green Tree or its emergency dispatch center, the duration of such recorded message shall not exceed 15 seconds. The contents of the recorded message shall be intelligible and in a format approved by the Borough of Green Tree.
B. 
A burglar or security alarm device shall be so designed that a thirty-second delay occurs between the time the alarm device receives a triggering stimulus and the time the alarm device transmits an alarm.
C. 
If an alarm device is designed to cause a bell, siren or sound-making device to be activated outside the premises on which the alarm device is installed, said alarm device shall be designed to deactivate the bell, siren or other sound-making device after five minutes of operation.
D. 
All alarm devices installed or used in the Borough of Green Tree shall meet the most current applicable standards of the Underwriters Laboratories, the National Fire Protection Association and/or any other applicable recognized standards in the industry.
E. 
The sensory mechanism used in connection with an alarm device must be capable of being adjusted to suppress false indications of fire or intrusion so that the alarm device will not be activated by impulses due to transient pressure change in water pipes, short flashes of light, power surges, wind noises, such as the rattling or vibrating of doors or windows, vehicular noises adjacent to the premises or other forces unrelated to a genuine alarm situation.
F. 
All alarm devices installed on any premises located in the Borough of Green Tree must be maintained, by the property owner and the occupant of the premises on which the device is located, in a good state of repair so as to assure reliability of operation.
No person shall cause or transmit an intentional false alarm.
A. 
The owner and/or occupant of any premises in the Borough of Green Tree shall pay to the Borough of Green Tree a charge for each false alarm emanating from the alarm device either servicing or connected or otherwise affixed to the premises, based on the number of false alarms occurring in any one calendar year, as set forth in Subsection E hereof.
B. 
When a false alarm occurs in the Borough of Green Tree, the Borough shall, within 10 days from the date of each false alarm, notify the property owner and/or occupant of the premises from which the false alarm emanated that a false alarm charge, as set forth in Subsection E hereof is due and payable. Such false alarm charge notice shall be in writing and shall be mailed by regular mail, postage prepaid, to the last known mailing address of the owner and/or occupant of the premises from which the false alarm emanated. Failure of the Borough of Green Tree to mail a notice of the assessment of a false alarm charge within 10 days from the occurrence of the false alarm shall preclude the Borough of Green Tree from assessing the false alarm charge.
C. 
A false alarm charge shall be due and payable to the Borough of Green Tree within 30 days from the date of mailing of the notice of assessment of the false alarm charge.
D. 
No person shall fail to pay a false alarm charge on or before the date due.
E. 
The fee and fine schedule for the false alarm charge shall be as follows:
[Amended 2-5-2024 by Res. No. 1338]
(1) 
Commercial false alarm.
(a) 
First and second occurrences: no fine.
(b) 
Three to five occurrences: $150 per occurrence.
(c) 
Six occurrences and over: $500 per occurrence.
(2) 
Residential false alarms.
(a) 
First and second occurrences: no fine.
(b) 
Three to seven occurrences: $50 per occurrence.
(c) 
Eight occurrences and over: $75 per occurrence.
(3) 
All fines due and payable by reason of the imposition of fines hereunder shall be due and payable to the Borough of Green Tree. Council shall be authorized, upon adoption of a resolution, from time to time, to amend the fee and fine schedule for false alarms.
F. 
The owners and occupants of the premises from which a false alarm emanates shall be jointly and severally, and/or individually, liable for all false alarm charges assessed hereunder.
G. 
It shall not be a defense to a false alarm charge that the owner is not in possession of the premises, nor shall any lease provisions between the owner and occupant be a defense to the assessment of a false alarm charge by the Borough of Green Tree.
The imposition of fines and penalties hereunder shall not apply to the following buildings owned and operated by the designated public agencies and used for the purposes described:
A. 
The Borough of Green Tree. Any and all buildings used and/or otherwise operated for its municipal purposes.
B. 
Hospitals.
C. 
Keystone Oaks School District. Any and all buildings used and/or otherwise operated for its educational purposes.
D. 
Medical Rescue Team South. Any and all buildings used and/or operated for its emergency medical purposes.
E. 
Green Tree Volunteer Fire Company. Any and all buildings used and/or operated for its emergency fire, rescue and/or medical purposes.
F. 
Schools and/or churches.
See Chapter 1, General Provisions, § 1-2, for the general penalty provisions of this Code.