[HISTORY: Derived from Sec. 4-2 of the 1999 Code of the Township
of Clinton. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The Mayor and Council of the Township of Clinton hereby finds and declares
that:
A.Â
The occupants of numerous residential and commercial
establishments have found it desirable to make provision for the installation
upon their premises of alarm systems for emergencies such as burglary and
fire and other perils.
B.Â
There have been a substantial number of false alarms
associated with the alarm systems which have been installed within the Township.
The number of false alarms has resulted in a situation that, if not remedied,
will affect the general health, safety and welfare of the community and inhibit
the response of the police and fire personnel in a true emergency, will lead
to an unnecessary drain upon the manpower, time, space, facilities and finances
of the Township, its Police and Volunteer Fire Departments and the deterioration
of quality of service to persons subscribing to alarm systems services and
inequities among the alarm businesses operating in the Township.
C.Â
The public interest therefore requires and enactment
of rules, regulations, standards and procedures to regulate and control the
alarm systems installed in the Township.
The purpose of this chapter is to regulate and control the installation,
operation and maintenance of private alarm systems within the Township in
order to insure that the quality of alarm responses rendered to the public
will be maintained at a high level, to eliminate potential harm resulting
in responses to false alarms, and to alleviate conditions otherwise leading
to unnecessary drain on the manpower, time, space, facilities, and finances
of the Township of Clinton and its Police and volunteer Fire Departments.
A.Â
The purpose of this chapter is to provide standards and
regulations for various types of intrusion, burglary, fire, carbon monoxide,
and other emergency alarm equipment which produce a visual or audible signal
or function by direct line, radio, telephone or by any other means requiring
a response by the Police Department, Volunteer Fire Department or other municipal
agencies.
B.Â
The provisions of this chapter shall apply to alarm businesses
and to any person who operates, maintains or owns any alarm device, dial alarm,
or local alarm designed to produce a visual or audible signal of an emergency
and designed to summon or alert, directly or through others, the police, fire
service, or other municipal agencies in response to any type of alarm signal.
The following definitions shall apply in the interpretation and enforcement
of this chapter unless otherwise specifically stated:
Any business operated by a person, partnership, corporation, or other
individual or entity which engages in the activity of altering, installing,
leasing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, selling, servicing or responding
to an fire, burglar, or carbon monoxide alarm system(s) or which causes any
of these activities to take place. Excluded from this definition however are
retail establishments which sell alarm systems over the counter and do not
service same.
Any type of alarm-activating equipment which provides warning of
burglary, intrusion, fire, flood, carbon monoxide or like peril.
Equipment or a device, or an assembly of equipment and devices, to
signal the presence of an emergency or hazard requiring urgent attention and
to which the Police Department, Fire Department or other municipal agency
may be expected to respond.
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company
or organization or entity of any kind in control of any building, structure
or facility wherein an alarm device or system is maintained, and including
but not limited to owners, tenants, subtenants or otherwise.
The Chief of Police of the Township of Clinton or his designated
representative.
The designated representative of the Chief of Police or the Fire
Official, who performs a function required or permitted by this chapter, under
the supervision of the Chief of Police or the Fire Official.
Any type of alarm system using telephone lines, transmitting an alarm
directly through the communications switchboard, answering service, or alarm
company console, providing warning of intrusion, fire, or other peril.
Any alarm or signal of an alarm actuated by inadvertence, negligence,
intentional or unintentional act of a person, domestic animal and/or household
pet other than an intruder; and including alarms caused by mechanical failure,
malfunction, or improper installation of the alarm system and related equipment.
It shall further include improper adjustment (sensitivity) to suppress false
indications due to short flashes of light, wind, noises, rattling or vibrations
of doors or other forces.
Includes the following:
The Fire Chief of the Township of Clinton or his designated representative.
The authorized companies providing fire protection and suppression
to the Township of Clinton.
A device having an audible alarm indicating smoke, carbon monoxide
and/or fire within a structure and not connected to an alarm system or to
any external sounding device outside of the structure.
The person who holds the license to install, operate, and maintain
the alarm/alarm console pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
Any alarm system, which, when activated, produces a signal not connected
to an alarm console or the communication switchboard, including but not limited
to business burglar alarms actuating bell or other sound-generating devices
and/or light-emitting devices providing warning or intrusion or other peril.
The term "local alarm" shall not include an alarm system solely connected
to a registered motor vehicle, nor shall the term include equipment designed
to signal solely within a building or series of buildings and which does not
emit signals, visible or audible, to persons outside such building or buildings,
i.e. independent smoke detector.
Any natural person or individual, or any firm, partnership, association,
limited partnership, sole proprietorship, corporation, or any other business
entity.
Any person who owns an alarm device who has obtained a permit according
to the provisions of this chapter. All permits shall be issued and fees paid
therefor on a one time basis.
Notice by certified mail, return receipt requested.
A.Â
No person shall install, operate or maintain any alarm
system unless the alarm system has been registered with the Township of Clinton
Police Department. The Police Department shall provide a copy of all approved
registration forms to the Township of Clinton Fire Subcode Official and Fire
Chief.
B.Â
An alarm system shall be deemed registered at such time
as the registration form supplied by the Police Department is completed as
to all information requested therein. Among the information to be provided
on the registration form is the following:
(1)Â
The name, address, and telephone number of the owner, upon which
the alarm system is installed.
(2)Â
The name, address and telephone number of the installer of the
system.
(3)Â
The type of system.
(4)Â
A list of the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the person(s)
to be contacted in the event of an alarm or in an emergency situation determined
by the Police or Fire Department
(5)Â
The names, addresses and twenty-four-hour telephone numbers of
the persons or company maintaining the alarm system.
C.Â
No further renewal registration shall be required unless
and until there has occurred any material change in the information previously
submitted with respect to any alarm systems in which event it shall be the
duty of the owner and user of the alarm system, within 10 days of such material
change, to file a supplemental or revised registration containing accurate,
current information.
D.Â
A fee in the amount of $10 shall accompany each registration.
For change or reregistration of new owners or users, there shall be a fee
of $10. Upon payment of the fee and filing of the registration, two decals
will be issued by the Police Department. The decals will be placed in plain
view, near the front/main entrance and rear/secondary entrance of the premises.
E.Â
All preexisting alarm systems shall comply with the requirements
of this chapter within 60 days of the date of the final adoption of this chapter.
F.Â
Excluded from this provision are independent smoke detectors
and independent carbon monoxide detectors that do not emit an audible or visible
signal outside of the structure.
A.Â
Each alarm system as defined herein and installed after
the effective date of this chapter shall utilize discrete circuitry for multipurpose
alarm systems to insure appropriate emergency response.
B.Â
Any alarm system which requires for its operation electricity
supplied by a public utility may be equipped with a battery rendering it operable
in the event of a power outage if so desired by the property owner. Such a
battery backup shall be required for any alarm system which will trigger itself
automatically in the event of a power outage.
C.Â
Every alarm system must be provided with a device which
will shut off the alarm after 10 minutes of activation.
D.Â
Every burglar alarm system 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 audible signal, if utilized, shall be audible
only within the structure and not externally.
E.Â
No alarm system may be connected directly or indirectly
to the Police or Fire Department.
F.Â
No person shall install, cause to be installed, or permit
to be installed, any alarm device by whatever name known, which automatically
selects a telephone line dedicated to the Police or Fire Department for the
purpose of playing a recorded message to report any emergency. All alarm systems
shall be programmed to dial Hunterdon County Communications at 908-782-0911.
G.Â
All dial alarms shall be capable of being disconnected
to allow a call to police headquarters or Hunterdon County Communications
in the event of a false alarm.
H.Â
No police, fire or other public department or official
shall be responsible in any way for the resetting or maintenance of any alarm
system.
I.Â
No alarm business or person owning, using or possessing
an alarm system shall cause or permit the giving of repeated false alarms,
for test purposes or otherwise. Owners/operators of such alarms shall be governed
by the false alarm procedures and penalties set forth in this chapter.
J.Â
If any person has any dial alarm connected at the time of the effective date of this chapter, it shall be reprogrammed (Refer to § 56-10 below) within 30 days of said effective date to comply with this chapter.
K.Â
The contents of a dial alarm message shall be clear and
intelligible and in the format approved by the Chief of Police or Fire Official.
No such message shall be transmitted more than two times as a result of a
single stimulus of the mechanism. Messages shall not exceed 15 seconds and
the time gap between each shall not exceed 10 seconds.
L.Â
The sensory mechanism of dial alarms shall be adjusted
so as to suppress false indications and not be actuated by impulses due to
short flashes or light, wind, noises, rattling, or vibration of doors or other
forces unrelated to general alarms.
M.Â
Permits for local alarm systems shall not be issued with
respect to buildings which are not owner-occupied, prior to receipt by the
Chief of Police of satisfactory proof that the occupant of the building has
been notified of the existence of such alarm system, or of the owner's intent
to install a local alarm system and the provisions of this chapter.
N.Â
By installing an alarm system and registering same with
the Township of Clinton, each permittee agrees to indemnify and hold harmless
the Township of Clinton and the Volunteer Fire Department of the Township
of Clinton and mutual aid departments, their agents, servants and employees
from and against any and all claims, suits, damages, costs, losses and expenses,
and to release the Township of Clinton, the Volunteer Fire Department of the
Township of Clinton and mutual aid departments, their agents, servants, and
employees from any and all liability or damages in any way resulting from
or arising out of or connected with the installation, operation or maintenance
of the alarm system or any act or omission connected therewith.
O.Â
Any alarm business and/or property owner having knowledge
of the sale or change of tenants in a property shall be responsible for notifying
the Police Department when one of its customers, tenants and/or owners possessing
an alarm system sells the property or changes tenancy. The alarm business,
and/or property owner shall notify the Police Department of the name of the
new owner or tenant and whether or not the new owner or tenant is continuing
with an alarm device or system within the property.
All information submitted in compliance with this chapter shall be held
in the strictest confidence and shall be deemed a record exempt from public
disclosure pursuant to state statute. Any violation of confidentiality shall
be deemed a violation of this chapter.
A.Â
Any person who fails to register an alarm system as required
by the provisions of this chapter is subject to a minimum of $50 and a maximum
of $500 fine, for each and every violation.
B.Â
Any owner, user or alarm business who installs such a
system that is not in compliance with this chapter is subject to a fine of
$50 and may be required to remove such an alarm system.
C.Â
In the case of each false alarm which summons the Police
or Fire Department to respond, the Chief of Police or Fire Chief as appropriate
shall cause an investigation to be made and shall keep a record of such false
alarms on file.
D.Â
In the event of the occurrence of three false alarms
within a twelve-month period, the permittee shall within three days after
written notice to do so from the Chief of Police, complete a written report
setting forth the cause or causes of the false alarms, the corrective action
taken and a statement as to whether the alarm system has been inspected and/or
serviced by an alarm service company, and such other information as the Chief
of Police may reasonably require.
E.Â
Minimum fines for false alarms.
(1)Â
Owners and/or users of alarm systems shall be subject
to the following minimum fine schedule for false alarms:
|
Number of False Alarms
|
Minimum Fine/Penalty
| |
|---|---|---|
|
1 - 3
|
Provide written report as required by Subsection D above.
| |
|
4
|
$25
| |
|
5 - 10
|
$50 per occurrence
| |
|
10 or more
|
$100 per occurrence
|
(2)Â
The calculation of the number of false alarms shall be
without regard to whether the false alarms involved intrusion alarms or fire
alarms.
Any person who intentionally causes the giving of false alarms shall
be in violation of this chapter and subject to a penalty of not less than
$100 and not more than $1,000 and/or imprisonment for any term not to exceed
90 days, and/or by a period of community service not to exceed 90 days, for
each such offense.
Any person testing an alarm system covered by the provisions of this
chapter shall notify the Police Department and Hunterdon County Communications
immediately prior to and immediately after the testing is completed. Failure
to do so shall constitute a violation of this chapter and subject such person
to the penalties set forth herein.
The Chief of Police and Fire Official shall cooperate in all respects
in connection with the administration of this chapter and the forms, permits,
decals, records and any other documents used by the Chief of Police.
The Chief of Police may from time to time promulgate rules and regulations
in furtherance of the administration of this chapter which shall be enforced
through the Police Department. Said rules and regulations shall become effective
upon approval by resolution of the Mayor and Council.
This chapter shall be enforced by the Police Department.
