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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-3303 - Ordinance - 01/13/2011ORDINANCE NO. 2011-3303 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 4, "BUSINESS REGULATIONS" SECTION 8 "ALARM SYSTEMS", OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS, BY AMENDING CERTAIN SECTIONS AS SET OUT BELOW; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; DECLARING A PENALTY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS: PART l: That CHAPTER 4, "BUSINESS REGULATIONS" SECTION 8 "ALARM SYSTEMS", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of College Station, Texas, be amended as set out in Exhibit "A", attached hereto and made a part of this ordinance for all purposes. PART 2: That if any provisions of any section of this ordinance shall be held to be void or unconstitutional, such holding shall in no way effect the validity of the remaining provisions or sections of this ordinance, which shall remain in full force and effect. PART 3: That any person, firm, or corporation violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punishable by a fine of not less than Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00). Each day such violation shall continue or be permitted to continue, shall be deemed a separate offense. Said Ordinance, being a penal ordinance, becomes effective ten (10) days after its date of passage by the City Council, as provided by Section 35 of the Charter of the City of College Station. PASSED, ADOPTED and APPROVED this 13th day of Sanuarv .201i. APPROVED: o~'1~►-'~ Mayor ATTEST: City SecretWy APP OVED: City Attorney Ordinance No. 2011-3303 Alarm Systems Ordinance Page 2 EXHIBIT "A" That CHAPTER 4, "BUSINESS REGULATIONS" SECTION 8 "ALARM SYSTEMS"", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of College Station, Texas, is hereby amended, and is to read as follows: SECTION 8: ALARM SYSTEMS A. DEFINITIONS (1) Alarm Aaent shall mean any individual employed by an alarm business whose duties include altering, installing, maintaining, moving, repairing, replacing, selling, servicing, responding to, or monitoring an alarm system. It shall also mean any person employed or otherwise associated with an alarm business who has access to confidential information relating to a customer or subscriber of such alarm business which could be used to compromise or defeat an alarm system. (2) Alarm Business shall mean any company whose duties include altering, installing, maintaining, moving, repairing, replacing, selling, servicing, responding to, or monitoring an alarm system. (3) Central Station means any premises, usually maintained by an alarm company, equipped to receive and displace signals from any type alarms. (4) Alarm User means any person on whose premises an alarm system is maintained, except for alarm systems on motor vehicles or alarms that summon only the security services of a private security company or other private entity. (5) Subscriber means any person or business which buys or otherwise obtains an alarm system and has a contract with an alarm business to monitor and/or service the alarm system. (6) Home Alarm means any alarm device or system which is connected to a residence. (7) Hold-un Alarm means any type of alarm system or device designated to be activated by the Alarm User or Subscriber in the event of a holdup or robbery. (8) Dial Alarm means any alarm or device which automatically selects a telephone line connected to the Police Department and reproduces a prerecorded message to re- port a criminal intrusion or other emergency requiring a police response. (9) Chief of Police means the Chief of the College Station Police Department (10) City means the City of College Station, Texas. Ordinance No. 2011-3303 Alarm Systems Ordinance Page 3 (11) False Alarm shall mean the activation of an alarm system or device through mechanical failure, malfunction, improper installation, or the negligence of the owner of an alarm system or device or of his employees or agents. Such terminology does not include, for example, alarms caused by hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes or other violent condition. (12) Person means any individual, corporation or organization. (13) Police Department means the Police Department of the City of College Station, Texas. B. ALARM BUSINESS LICENSE No person shall conduct an alarm business in the City of College Station unless they are licensed by the State of Texas under the provisions of the Private Investigators and Private Security Agencies Act. C. RECORDS (1) All alarms within the City of College Station are subject to the City Ordinance regulating alarms whether or not they terminate at the Police Department. Upon the date this ordinance is adopted, no additional alarm terminals shall be permitted to be installed at the Police Department. Every subscriber of an alarm system or device within the City of College Station shall have an emergency response card on file with the Chief of Police. The card must contain the names and current telephone numbers of at least three (3) individuals authorized to enter upon the premises and turn off any such alarm. The person must acknowledge in writing that the employees of the Police Department of the City of College Station are authorized to enter any premises where an alarm has been activated, and they may use reasonable means necessary to gain entry to determine if the alarm is valid or false. (2) The City of College Station shall maintain a record of all responses to activated alarms. Such records shall include the time, date, location of the alarm, any individuals who responded to the alarm and information indicating if activation of the alarm was valid or false. D. OPERATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS The sensory mechanisms used in connection with the alarms shall be adjusted to suppress for all signals so the alarms will not be activated by impulses due to transient pressure surges, electrical power surges or failures, short flashes of light, normal room temperature changes, wind noises, rattling or vibrating doors or windows, vehicular noises or other causes unrelated to genuine signals. Ordinance No. 2011-3303 Alarm Systems Ordinance E. ALARM SYSTEM STANDARDS Page 4 (1) Power Supply - Any alarm system which necessitates response by a law enforcement agency or is a public alarm, shall be provided with standby power to automatically maintain the system in a normal condition for a period of four hours in the event of the interruption of the primary power source. This does not apply where the central monitoring equipment produces a distinctive signal indicating power failure at the protected premises and a police response is not required. (2) The City shall be entitled to inspect any installation for standby power supply function or any other problem during regular business hours. F. MAINTENANCE (1) All alarm systems shall be subject to repair or correction no later than the end of the business day following the day on which the User or Alarm Agent receives notification of the need for such service. (2) The Police Chief or his delegate may require inspections of any alarm to correct any problems. G. AUDIBLE OR LOCAL ALARM CUTOFF Every audible local alarm shall be equipped with an automatic fifteen (15) minute cutoff and reset device, or shall be capable of being silenced manually by the owner or his representative upon his/her arrival at the location of the alarm. H. FALSE ALARMS (1) Upon notification by the City of College Station Police Department, the designated Alarm User or Subscriber, or one of the persons listed on the emergency response card shall come to the scene of an alarm activation within (30) minutes of being notified of the alarm activation. Verification that an alarm is false shall be done by police officers. (Ordinance No. 1837 of January 11, 1990) (2) An Alarm User or Subscriber shall be allowed three (3) false alarms in a preceding twelve (12) month period without penalty. After this, a User or Subscriber shall be assessed a fine based on the following schedule: Number of False Alarms 1- 3 false alarms 4 - 5 false alarms 6 - 7 false alarms 8 or more false alarms Fine $0 $50.00 for each false alarm $75.00 for each false alarm $100.00 for each false alarm Ordinance No. 2011-3303 Alarm Systems Ordinance Page 5 (Ordinance No. 1907 of September 12, 1991) (3) Any false alarms resulting from a failure to take the necessary corrective action to prevent any such reoccurrence and/or nonpayment of any false alarm penalty may result in the College Station Chief of Police providing a written notice ordering a disconnection of such alarm until such corrective action or payment of fee is made, provided that no disconnection shall be ordered on any premises required by law to have an alarm system in operation. I. NOTICE OF VIOLATION (1) Responsibility of Issuance. The police department shall be responsible for notifying the Finance Department of the amount of any fees to be collected. The Finance Department shall be responsible for collecting any fees. (2) Waiver of Imposition. In the event that the Chief of Police determines that the false alarms occurred as a direct result of an interruption of electrical power, a telephone system malfunction or other causes clearly beyond the control of the owner, the Chief of Police may waive the imposition of the applicable false alarm penalty or administrative sanctions. (3) Hearing from Administrative Decision Finality. Any person subject to the imposition of a fee, order of disconnection or other administrative sanction under the terms of this ordinance shall have a right to appeal the decision of the Chief of Police to the City Manager. Requests for a hearing must be made in writing filed with the Office of the City Manager within fifteen (15) days of the date of the notice of administrative decision. Upon receipt of such written request, the City Manager shall schedule a hearing date and inform the owner of the date, time and place of the past false alarms, corrective action taken, and any inspection reports on the cause of false alarms. If the City Manager determines that the false alarms were not caused by the owner, his employees, representatives or agents, and that reasonable steps have been taken to correct the problem, the penalty disconnection order or administrative sanction may be suspended in whole or part. The City Manager shall keep a written report of the hearing, including a statement of the reasons for the action taken. (Ordinance No. 1837 of January 11, 1990) J. PENALTY A violation of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punishable by a fine pursuant to the General Penalty set out in Chapter 1, Section 5, of this Code of Ordinances. (Ordinance No. 2030 of September 9, 1993)