[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Ho-Ho-Kus 2-28-2012 by Ord. No. 1003. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire Department — See Ch. 25.
Miscellaneous offenses — See Ch. 38.
Police Department — See Ch. 46.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ALARM BUSINESS
Any business operated by a person, partnership, corporation or other business entity, for profit, which engages in the activity of altering, installing, leasing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, selling, servicing or responding to a fire or burglar alarm system or which causes any of these activities to take place. This definition does not include those retail establishments which only sell alarm devices or alarm systems over the counter.
ALARM DEVICE
Any type of alarm-activating equipment which provides warning of burglary, intrusion, fire, flood or other potential for harm to life or property. Medical alert devices, smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors not integrated/connected into a central alarm receiving station are exempt from the registration provisions of this chapter.
ALARM MALFUNCTION
An alarm system failing to operate or work properly.
ALARM SYSTEM
The installation in a building or structure of one or more alarm devices for the express purpose of giving visual, audible and/or electronic warning of an emergency such as burglary, intrusion, fire, flood or other potential for harm to life or property.
ALARM USER
Any person, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization or authorized agent thereof of any kind in control of any building, structure or facility wherein an alarm device or alarm system is operated.
FALSE ALARM
An alarm signal eliciting a response by police, firefighters, other emergency personnel or other public officials when a situation requiring a response by police, firefighters, other emergency personnel or other public officials does not in fact exist. A false alarm shall not include an alarm signal caused by violent conditions of nature, such as, but not limited to, lightning, tornadoes, hurricanes, windy conditions, power issues or other extraordinary circumstances not reasonably subject to control by the alarm business or alarm user.
INDEPENDENT SMOKE/FIRE DETECTOR
A device giving an audible alarm indicating smoke and/or fire within a structure and not connected to an alarm system or to any external warning device.
A. 
No person or business entity shall install, operate or maintain any alarm device or alarm system unless the alarm device or alarm system is annually registered with the Borough of Ho-Ho-Kus Police Department. An alarm device or alarm system shall be deemed registered at such time as a registration form supplied by the Police Department is completed as to all information requested therein and is returned to the Police Department along with the annual registration fee paid in full. This registration shall take place no later than January 30 or within 30 days of installation of a new system; provided, however, that any alarm device or system installed before the effective date hereof shall be registered within 45 days of the adoption of this chapter. Among the information to be provided on the registration form is the following:
(1) 
The name, address and telephone number of the owner of the property upon which the alarm device or alarm system is installed.
(2) 
The name, address and telephone number of the manager of the property upon which the alarm device or alarm system is installed, if applicable.
(3) 
A list of the names, addresses and telephone numbers of at least three persons to be contacted in the event of an alarm or in an emergency situation as determined by the Police Department or Fire Department.
(4) 
The name, address and telephone number of the installer of the alarm device or alarm system.
(5) 
The type of alarm device or alarm system.
(6) 
The name, address and telephone number of the person(s) or company maintaining the alarm device or alarm system.
B. 
Subsequent to the annual registration period, if there is any material change in the information previously provided during the annual registration with respect to any alarm device or alarm system, it shall be the duty of the property owner or manager to file an amended registration form containing accurate current information within 10 days of the change.
C. 
The change in ownership of a property with an alarm system shall be deemed a material change and shall require the filing of a new registration form submitted to the Police Department along with the annual fee.
D. 
An initial registration fee for an alarm system shall be $100.
E. 
The annual fee in the amount of $25 shall accompany each annual registration form.
F. 
In addition to the penalty noticed in § 3A-5 below, any alarm device or alarm system installed prior to January 30 that is not registered with the Police Department by January 30 may be subject to a late fee of $10 per month.
A. 
The Police Department shall cause a record to be made of all alarms, inclusive of all false alarms, in any calendar year. The following penalties shall apply to the person responsible for any alarm device:
(1) 
For the first through third false alarms and alarm malfunctions, a written warning shall be issued.
(2) 
For the fourth and fifth false alarms and alarm malfunctions, there shall be imposed a fine of $50 for each such false alarm or alarm malfunction.
(3) 
For the sixth through ninth false alarms and alarm malfunctions, there shall be imposed a fine of $150 for each such false alarm or alarm malfunction.
(4) 
For the 10th and subsequent false alarms and alarm malfunctions, there shall be imposed a fine of $250 for each such false alarm or alarm malfunction.
(5) 
In addition to the penalty noted above, any owner or user of an alarm system (other than a fire alarm system) which experiences more than 12 false alarms in any calendar period may be required to disconnect said alarm system for a period of 90 days, unless said system is required by law, and provide a statement from those that service the alarm system that the malfunction has been corrected.
B. 
Fire alarm systems. Any owner or user of an alarm device or alarm system which experiences more than four fire false alarms within any twelve-month period shall be required by the Fire Department to modify or improve said system in such a way as to prevent accidental activation and may be subject to penalty by the Fire Prevention Bureau in accordance with the Uniform Fire Code (N.J.A.C. 5:70-1.1 et seq.) or other applicable law. Prior to modifying any required system, the owner shall submit a construction permit application showing the design and nature of the proposed modifications.
A. 
All burglar alarm devices or alarm systems must be provided with a device which will automatically shut off the audible alarm function only after 15 minutes of activation.
B. 
All burglar alarm devices or alarm systems not fitted with an external key switch shall be equipped with a time delay of at least 15 seconds, which may include an audible signal of the same length of time, said time delay to be designed to prevent accidental activation of the system. The fifteen-second signal, if utilized, shall be audible only within the structure and not externally.
C. 
In the event that an alarm device or alarm system other than a fire or burglar alarm system is tied into and/or serviced by a central station or answering service, upon activation of said alarm device or alarm system, the central station or answering service shall verify the validity of the alarm prior to notifying the Police Department of the same. Auto-dialing systems calling E911 or any other public safety phone number with a recorded message are prohibited.
D. 
The resetting of any transmitted fire alarm shall be done in the presence of the Fire Department. In no case shall an alarm be reset prior to the Fire Department's authorization. In the case of burglar alarms, the Police Department shall not be responsible for resetting the alarm device or alarm system.
A. 
Maximum penalty. For violation of any provision of this chapter, including the failure to register an alarm device or alarm system, the maximum penalty, upon conviction, shall be one or more of the following: a fine not exceeding $1,000, or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 90 days, or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days, at the discretion of the Municipal Court Judge (N.J.S.A. 40:49-5, as amended).
B. 
Separate violations. Except as otherwise provided, every day in which a violation of any provision of this chapter exists shall constitute a separate violation.
C. 
Application. The maximum penalty stated in this section is not intended to state an appropriate penalty for every violation. Any less penalty, including a nominal penalty or no penalty at all, may be appropriate for a particular case or violation.
D. 
Additional remedies. The imposition of a penalty as provided in Subsection A above shall be in addition to any injunctive or remedial relief which is authorized under the laws of the state, with the same force and effect as though provided for in this Code. Such penalty shall not be deemed to be in lieu of any provision for revocation or suspension of any license or permit.
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any alarm device or alarm system installed on property occupied by any Borough, county, state or federal government agency or office or to alarms used for medical emergencies only.
A. 
In response to any alarm signal indicating panic or medical emergency, as so authorized by the alarm system owner in the permit application, the Police Department and/or Fire Department may enter the premises, by force if necessary, to respond to such signal, and the Borough of Ho-Ho-Kus and its various departments, agencies and officials shall be held harmless from and on account of any and all damages arising out of such entry.
B. 
Any panic or medical emergency alarm which has not been properly registered with the Police Department in accordance with this chapter will be considered a real emergency, and entry will be made to the premises, by force if necessary, in response to such signal. In such cases, the Borough and its various departments, agencies, and officials shall be held harmless from and on account of any and all damages arising out of such entry.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances which are inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.
If any portion of this chapter is adjudged unconstitutional or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall not affect or invalidate the remainder of this chapter, but shall be confined in its effect to the provision directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.