HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 29-87 Alarm SystemsORDINANCE NO. 29 -87
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN RELATING TO
ALARM SYSTEMS
The City Council of the City of Dublin does ordain as follows:
Section 1: DEFINITIONS. For the purpose of this Ordinance, the
following, terms, phrases, words, and their derivations shall have
the meanings hereafter respectively ascribed.
(a) Alarm Aqent. "Alarm agent" means any person employed or
hired by an alarm business and whose duties include
altering, installing, maintaining, moving, repairing,
replacing, or servicing an alarm system or responding to
same. :
(b)
Alarm Business. "Alarm business" means any activity
carried on by any person operating for any consideration
which includes in the sale and installation,
maintenance, alteration, or servicing of alarm systems
or which responds to such alarm systems..
(c) Alarm System. "Alarm system" means any assembly of.
equipment and devices arranged to signal the presence of
any condition upon premises within the City of Dubt~n to
which an emergency response by public safety personnel
would commonly occur. The term "alarm system" shall
include any equipment which is designed to detect an
emergency or which is designed to be activated by a
person to report an emergency.
(d)
Alarm User. "Alarm user" means any person who owns,
operates or manages or is entitled to possession of any
premises in the.City of Dublin on which an alarm system
has been installed and operates.
(e)
Audible Alarm. "Audible alarm" means any alarm system,
which, when activated, is capable of being heard within
the premises and the immediate area thereof.
(f) Automatic Dialing System. "Automatic dialing system"
means any alarm system which automatically sends over
regular telephone lines, by direct connection or
otherwise, a prerecorded voice message indicating the
existence of a condition upon premises within the City
to Which an emergency response by public safety
personnel would commonly occur.
(g)
Central Station. "Central station" means an office to
which monitored alarm and supervisory signaling devices
are connected, where operators supervise the circuits,
and where personnel may be maintained continuously to
respond to and investigate signa, ls, and which signaling
devices are listed by Underwriters' Laboratory.
False Alarm. "FalSe alarm" means any improper
activation of an alarm system, including, but not
limited to, improper activation due to negligent acts or
omissions or to equipment malfunction. Improper
activation of an alarm system caused by an event out of
the control of the alarm user or alarm business,
including earthquake, storm, or other violent,
uncontrollable acts of nature, shall not constitute a
false alarm.
(i)
Monitored Alarm System. "Monitored alarm system" means
an alarm signaling system which, when activated by an
alarm device, transmits a signal to a central station
where appropriate action is taken to investigate and
respond to the signal.
Section 2: ALARM BUSINESS REGISTRATION. It shall~be unlawful for
any person to engage in, conduct or carry on any alarm business
within the City of Dublin unless such person has first registered
an intention to engage in such alarm business with the Dublin
Police Department, giving the Department such information as it
may require, and has displayed to the Department a current~ ~alid
license or permit issued by the State of California, where State
law requires such a permit or license.
Section 3: DISCONTINUATION OF BUSINESS. Every person engaging
in, conducting or carrying on any alarm business within the City
of Dublin shall within thirty (30) days of its discontinuance of
the business within the City, notify the Dublin Police Department
in writing of said discontinuance.
- 2 -
Section 4: NOTIFICATION OF INSTALLATION OF AN ALARM SYSTEM. Each
time an alarm business sells or installs an alarm system within
the City of Dublin, it shall notify the City in writing within ten
(10) days thereof. The notice shall include the following:
(a) The name, address, and telephone number of the alarm
business or its alarm agent;
(b)
The name of the alarm user and his or her business
address, telephone number, residential address and
telephone number;
(c) The location, classification and purpose of the alarm
system; and
(d)
The name of at least one (1) other person responsible to
respond to the alarm site and the business address and
telephone number and residential address and telephone
number of such person.
Section 5: AUDIBLE ALARM SYSTEM. I't shall be unlawful to buy,
sell, install, or operate within the' City of Dublin an audible
alarm system which upon activating emits a sound similar to sirens
in use on emergency vehicles or for civil defense purposes. For
the purpose of this Section, any electronic sounding device that
produces a variable pitch tone shall be considered similar to an
emergency vehicle siren. This Section shall not apply to sirens
mounted inside a building which cannot be heard from outside of
the building. ~.~
Section 6: AUDIBLE ALARM SYSTEM SILENCING. It shall be unlawful
to operate an audible alarm system which does not silence within a
maximum time of fifteen (15) minutes from the time of activation.
If the alarm system has an automatic cutoff with a rearming phase,
the rearming phase must be capable of distinguishing between an
open and closed circuit, and if the circuit is broken, the system
shall not rearm.
Section 7: INSTRUCTION AS TO OPERATION OF ALARM SYSTEMS. Each
alarm business and alarm agent shall provide accurate and complete ~
written instruction to the alarm system user in the proper use and-
operation of said system including but not limited to the
avoidance of false alarms. All businesses which sell alarm
systems, but which are not "alarm businesses" or "alarm agents" as
defined in this ordinance are similarly responsible for
instructing the buyer of the alarm system in the proper use of
said system.
Section 8: NOTICE OF NAME OF SERVICER OR OCCUPANT. Every
audible alarm system shall have a sign or notice posted on or near
the audible device with the name and telephone number of the
person or company responsible for the maintenance of the system.
The notice shall be posted in such a position as to be readable
from the ground level outside and adjacent to the building.
Section 9: RESPONSE UPON NOTIFICATION. Upon notification by the
Police Department, the person or company named in the notice
required by Section 8 of this ordinance or the representative of
such person or company shall promptly proceed within at least
thirty (30) minutes to the scene of the alarm and render necessary
service. This service shall include, when necessary, the opening
of the premises so that the origin of the alarm may be determined
and appropriate action may be taken.
Section 10: MONITORED ALARM SYSTEMS. The provisions prescribed
in this Section shall apply to all monitored alarm systems whether
operated as a silent alarm, audible alarm or a combination of
both. " .~
(a)
It shall be unlawful to buy, sell, install or operate
any alarm system which, when activated, causes an alarm
to be sent directly to the Dublin Police Department by
an automatic dialing system.
- 4 -
(b)
It shall be unlawful for anyone to advertise, sell or
install an automatic dialing system with the intent or
instructions that said system may be utilized or
operated to directly call the Dublin Police Department.
(c) Any alarm business or alarm agent which operates a
monitored alarm, shall., if notified by the Dublin Police
Department, provide a representative of the alarm user
to respond within thirty (30) minutes to the scene of
the alarm and render necessary service. This service
shall include opening the premises in order that the
origin of the alarm may be determined and appropriate
action may be taken.
Section 11: STANDBY BACKUP POWER SERVICE. Ail alarm systems
shall have a standby backup power supply which will automatically
assume the operation of the alarm system should any interruption
occur in power to the system. The transfer of power from the
primary source to the backup source must occur in a manner which
does not activate the alarm.
Section 12: RESPONSIBLE PARTIES-FALSE ALARMS-PENALTIES.
(a) No alarm users, alarm agent or alarm business shall have
or permit more than one (1) false alarm at the same
premises within any thirty (30) day period.
(b)
No alarm users, alarm agent or alarm business shall have
or permit more than two (2) false alarms at the ~Dme
premises within any ninety (90) day period.
(c) No alarm users, alarm agents or alarm business shall
have or permit more than three (3) false alarms at the
same premises within any one hundred eighty (180) day
period.
Section 13: VIOLATION. Any person violating any provision of
this ordinance shall be guilty of an misdemeanor.
Section 14: APPLICABILITY TO EXISTING ALARM SYSTEMS. The
provisions of this ordinance shall be applicable to an alarm user
who uses, operates or maintains on his or her premises an alarm
system installed on or before , 1987, thirty (30) days
after the effective date of this Chapter.
Section 15. EFFECTIVE DATE AiqD POSTING OF ORDINANCE. This
Ordinance shall take effect and be in force thirty (30) days from
and after the date of its passage. The City Clerk of the City of
Dublin shall cause this Ordinance to be posted in at least three
(3) public places in the City of Dublin in accordance with Section
36933 of the Government Code of the State of California.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Dublin
on this 27th day of April , 1987, by the following vote:
AYES:
Councilmembers Hegarty, Moffatt, Snyder,
Vonheeder and Mayor Jeffery
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ATTEST:
City Clerk
- 6 -