Chapter 103 — PRIVATE SECURITY AND FIRE ALARM SYSTEMS

The purpose of this chapter is to regulate the use and installation of alarm devices, to promote their responsible use, and to reduce or eliminate the incidence of false alarms. The Eureka Police Department and the Humboldt Bay Fire Joint Powers Authority ("JPA") (of which the City of Eureka is a member agency) respond to over 1,100 false alarms every year, often at the same location. Before the city joined the JPA, the Eureka Fire Department also responded to a large number of false alarms every year. This high incidence of false alarms reduces the ability of Police and Fire to respond to valid alarms and other emergencies, which constitutes a hazard to emergency responders and to the general public. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.

ACCESSIBILITY. Any building or portion thereof that is serviced by an alarm must be capable of being reached by the emergency responders whether by patrol vehicle, fire apparatus, by foot, or no more than 300 feet from where the emergency vehicle can be parked. If there is any barrier such as a wall, gate, cliff, dog or any other material object that prevents, impedes or jeopardizes the safety of the emergency responders so that the alarm and/or building cannot be checked, it will be classified as "Inaccessible".

ALARM ADMINISTRATOR. The administrator of the alarm is based on the nature of the alarm. Security alarms, including; burglary, duress, intrusion, panic, robbery/holdup alarms, or alarms resulting in Police Department response will be administered by the Eureka Police Department. Fire and life safety alarms, including; private fire alarm systems and private medical alarms, chemical release alarms, carbon monoxide (CO) alarms, or alarms resulting in Fire Department response administered by the Fire Department. The Police Chief may assign the administrative tasks that are the responsibility of the city in this chapter. The Humboldt Bay Fire Joint Powers Authority (or any third party under contract with the city to provide fire protection services) may contract with the city for the administration of this chapter, on its behalf. If, at any time, a department, whether internal to the city, is established to provide fire protection services, then the Fire Chief of that department may assign the administrative tasks.

ALARM COMPANY. Any person, firm or corporation engaged in the business of selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving, removing, installing or monitoring an alarm system in or on any building, place or premises. This chapter specifically excludes retail establishments which sell, as part of their products, components for alarm systems; but which do not offer service, maintenance, repair, alteration, replacement, moving or installation of systems in or on any business, place or premises.

ALARM PERMIT. A permit issued under the provisions of this chapter by the Alarm Administrator.

ALARM SITE. The location identified in the alarm permit where the alarm system is located.

ALARM SYSTEM. Any combination of city-approved compatible alarm system devices or equipment which is designed or intended to notify persons of an emergency at a particular location to which Police or Fire respond. The term ALARM SYSTEM includes any equipment which is designed to detect an emergency, or which is designed to be activated by a person to report an emergency.

ALARM USER. Any person owning or using an alarm system at his or her place of residence or business, whether it be owned, leased or rented and made available for use by his or her agents, employees, tenants, representatives, or family. ARMING STATION. A device that allows control of an alarm system.

AUDIBLE ALARM. Any alarm system which, when activated, emits a sound which is capable of being heard outside the structure where the system is located, even if the system is completely located within the structure.

AUTOMATIC DIALING SYSTEM. Any alarm system which automatically sends over regular telephone lines, by direct connection or otherwise, a pre-recorded voice message indicating the existence of an emergency situation that the alarm system is designed to detect.

DIRECTOR. The City Manager or his or her designee.

DURESS ALARM. A silent alarm system signal generated by the entry of designated code into an arming station in order to signal that the alarm user is being forced to turn off the system and requests law enforcement response.

ENHANCED CALL CONFIRMATION. An attempt by the alarm system monitoring company to contact the alarm site and/or alarm user, to determine whether an alarm event is valid before requesting law enforcement response. A second call will be made to contact the alarm user if the first attempt fails. EXCEPT:

(1) As defined by ANSI/CSAA CS V 01 2016 or current version, in case of a fire, panic robbery-in-progress alarm or verified alarm, or

(2) As defined by the local jurisdiction or state law.

EXCESSIVE FALSE ALARMS. False alarms to be considered excessive shall be any alarm system, either silent or audible, that emits more than two false alarms within any 12-month fiscal year period and is therefore deemed an immediate safety hazard, and as such, is subject to revocation by recommendation of the Alarm Administrator.

FALSE ALARM. The notification to the Eureka Police Department ("EPD") and the Fire Department concerning the activation of an alarm system or alarm device when:

(1) There is no evidence of a crime or other activity that warrants the assistance of the Eureka Police Department on the premises, as indicated by the investigation of a police officer on the scene or by the lack of a police report filed by the property owner, and no individual who was on or near the premises or who had viewed a video communication from the premises called for dispatch or confirmed a need for police response; or

(2) There is no indication or presence of a fire on the premises that warrants a call for assistance from or investigation by the Fire Department and no individual who was on or near the premises or who had viewed a video communication from the premises called for the dispatch or confirmed a need for fire response; or

(3) The dispatch of police or fire personnel was cancelled by the alarm system monitoring company, whether the alarm was cancelled before or after the arrival of police or fire personnel at the alarm site.

FIRE DEPARTMENT. Refers to the Humboldt Bay Fire JPA or any other provider of fire protections services for the City of Eureka.

HOLD-UP ALARM. Activation of an alarm system or alarm device that notifies EPD that the alarm site is being held-up. INTRUSION ALARM. An alarm whose purpose is to detect entry or attempted entry into a structure or a defined area, whether interior or exterior in nature.

LATE APPLICATION FEE. If Police or Fire responds to the alarm activation without having an alarm permit on file, the permit holder is subject to a late alarm application fee for the first false alarm activation and shall be subject to the normal false alarm assessments for the second and subsequent false activations. (See the City of Eureka Schedule of Fees and Service Charges for specific fee and assessment amounts.)

MONITORING COMPANY. A person in the business of providing monitoring services.

PANIC ALARM. Any alarm system that is activated by the direct action of the person who believes they are or are about to be the victim of a crime requesting the emergency response of police officers.

PENALTY ASSESSMENT. The civil penalty against the permit holder in the form of a letter or bill for the misuse or false activation of any alarm.

PERMITTEE or PERMIT HOLDER. Any person holding an alarm permit issued under the provisions of this chapter. For purposes of this subchapter, this includes any individual or entity who has failed to obtain an alarm permit pursuant to the requirements of this subchapter.

PERSON. Any natural person, partnership, corporation, unincorporated association, or other business entity.

PRIVATE FIRE ALARM SYSTEM (PFAS). Any combination of approved compatible alarm systems devices that are designed or intended to notify the occupant(s) of the alarm location of a fire emergency to which the Fire Department responds. The PFAS alarm system shall be installed in compliance with California State Fire Marshal standards.

PRIVATE MEDICAL LIFELINE ALARM. Any alarm system which is activated by a person needing emergency medical/welfare assistance and/or the alarm monitoring company requests an emergency medical response because the alarm subscriber did not respond to a regularly scheduled "well person" check.

RESIDENTIAL. Any premises used as dwelling units which includes apartments, hotels, motels and lodging houses, whether or not the location is occupied.

RESPONSE. The point in time that a police unit has been dispatched or an engine company has moved the fire apparatus to respond to an alarm activation.

ROBBERY/HOLD-UP. Any alarm system that is activated by the direct action of the person being robbed or an observer of the robbery.

SILENT ALARM. Any alarm system which, when activated, transmits an alarm signal to a receiving center without obvious local indication of alarm activation.

VERIFY. An attempt by the monitoring company, or its representative, to contact the alarm site and/or alarm user by telephone and/or other electronic means, whether or not actual contact with a person is made to attempt to determine whether an alarm signal is valid before requesting police or fire dispatch, in an attempt to avoid an unnecessary alarm dispatch request. For the purpose of this subchapter, telephone verification shall require, as a minimum, that a second call be made to a different number if the first attempt fails to reach an alarm user who can properly identify themselves to attempt to determine whether an alarm signal is valid before requesting law enforcement dispatch.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

• (A) An alarm user shall:

• (1) Obtain an alarm permit from the City of Eureka;

• (2) Maintain the alarm site and the alarm system in a manner that will minimize or eliminate false alarms;

• (3) Ensure that a responsible party is available, at all times, to verify that an alarm signal is valid;

(4) Ensure that a responsible party responds to the alarm system's location within 30 minutes when requested by Police or Fire in order to:

• (a) Deactivate an alarm system;

• (b) Provide access to the alarm site; and/or

• (c) Provide alternative security for the alarm site.

• (5) Not activate an alarm system for any reason other than an occurrence of an event that the alarm system was intended to report.

(B) An alarm user shall adjust the mechanism or cause the mechanism to be adjusted so that an alarm signal audible on the exterior of an alarm site will sound for no longer than ten minutes after being activated. An alarm user shall have a licensed alarm installation company inspect the alarm system after two false alarms in a 12-month period. The Alarm Administrator may waive a required inspection if it determines that a false alarm(s) could not have been related to a defect or malfunction in the alarm system or malfunction in the alarm system. After three false alarms within a 12-month fiscal-year period, the alarm user must have a licensed alarm installation company modify the alarm system to be more false-alarm resistant or provide additional user training as appropriate. The alarm user shall also be subject to penalties for such false alarms.

• (C) An alarm user/alarm system shall not use automatic voice dialers.

• (D) An alarm user shall maintain at each alarm site a set of written operating instructions for each alarm system.

(E) The Police Chief may require an alarm user to remove or modify a hold-up alarm that is single action, non-recessed button, if two false hold-up alarms have occurred.

• (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

This chapter shall not apply to alarm systems affixed to automobiles, boats, or recreational vehicles or systems which do not necessitate a response by Police or Fire. However, in systems affixed to automobiles, boats, or recreational vehicles, if the alarm user requests a response by Police or Fire, that alarm system will be brought within the permit requirements of this chapter from that time forward.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

(A) It shall be unlawful for any person to use, install, or cause to be installed an alarm system on any premises within the city without first applying for and receiving an alarm permit. Alarm systems installed prior to the effective date of this chapter shall be required to be brought within the alarm standards set forth by this chapter.

• (B) It shall be unlawful for any person to use or operate an alarm system within the city under a revoked permit.

• (C) Any person operating an alarm system within the city without an alarm permit as required by this chapter, or under a revoked permit, shall be subject to all applicable penalty fees. (See the City of Eureka Schedule of Fees and Service Charges.)

(D) The Alarm Administrators shall develop and implement procedures for the administration of this chapter. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

• (A) Each application for an alarm system permit shall be made on a form prescribed by the city which may include any information which is necessary for effective administration of this subchapter, including the following information:

• (1) Name, address and telephone number of the applicant.

• (2) Name, address, and telephone number of the business or premises where the alarm system will operate.

(3) The names and telephone numbers of two or more persons who have the ability to verify and respond to the alarm site within 30 minutes, if activation occurs, during any hour of the day or night, and that the person(s) have the ability to deactivate the alarm. In the event a person able to respond to the alarm site as mentioned above cannot be located, the responsible alarm company shall release the public safety response agency(s) from the scene.

• (4) A description of the alarm system, its purposes, the alarm system model number, the manufacturer's name and the name of the company performing the installation and maintenance.

• (5) Any dangerous or special conditions present at the alarm site.

• (6) Schedule for regular maintenance of the alarm system.

• (B) The Alarm Administrator shall approve and issue the permit upon finding:

• (1) The application contains the required information;

• (2) The alarm system meets the standards prescribed by this chapter;

• (3) That the applicable fees have been paid (pursuant to the city's Schedule of Fees and Service Charges);

• (4) That the alarm system is accessible to Police or Fire;

• (5) The permit is issued subject to the proper maintenance and operation of the alarm's system.

• (C) Change of information on alarm permit. The permittee shall give written notice to the Alarm Administrator within seven working days of any change in the information provided on the alarm permit application.

(D) The permit is good for one fiscal year. It is incumbent upon the permittee to ensure that the permit does not expire, and that the renewal application questionnaire is completed and returned to the Alarm Administrator in a timely fashion. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

The permit shall not be transferable and shall terminate when there is a change of alarm user, change of location, or upon revocation or suspension.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

• (A) An alarm permit may be revoked by recommendation of the Alarm Administrator for any of the following reasons:

• (1) False representations were made upon the permit application; or

• (2) The alarm system emits excessive false alarms, deeming the system an immediate safety hazard as prescribed by this chapter; or

• (3) Failure to observe any of the regulations or provisions of this chapter.

(B) Notice and effective dates. A written notice of revocation, setting the reason for the action, shall be mailed by certified mail giving the permittee ten working days from the mailing date to disconnect or remove the alarm from the premises. Any person failing to disconnect the alarm system when required by this chapter shall be subject to the penalties as set forth in § 103.14.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

(A) Revocation of an alarm system permit may be appealed to the Alarm Administrator. The permittee may submit a written statement, setting forth the reasons why the permit should not be revoked, to the Alarm Administrator not more than ten working days from the mailing date of the notice of revocation.

(B) The alarm user may continue to operate the alarm system during the appeal process, unless the Alarm Administrator recommends the disconnection of the alarm system.

(C) The decisions of the Alarm Administrator with respect to this chapter will be final and conclusive.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

Following the revocation of the alarm permit, the permit may be reinstated upon recommendation of the Alarm Administrator when:

(A) The cause for the revocation has been corrected; and

(B) The permittee pays a permit reinstatement fee to the city. (See the City of Eureka Schedule of Fees and Service Charges "City Fee Schedule".)

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

The sending of an alarm by an alarm system monitoring company, which results in the dispatch of Police or Fire, shall subject the alarm user or property owner to a false alarm fee whenever there is no evidence of a crime or other activity that would warrant a call for Police or Fire assistance or investigation at the premises; provided however, that no false alarm fee shall be assessed if any individual who was on or near the premises, or who had viewed a video communication from the premises, called for the dispatch and confirmed a need for police or fire response.

(A) False alarm fees, including any penalties for failure to register, shall be imposed per the city's Fee Schedule.

(B) In the event that Police or Fire were dispatched to the premises, the alarm user or property owner shall be subject to a false alarm fee per the city's fee schedule. Such amount represents the cost of dispatch and initial response incurred by Fire and/or Police.

(C) Notice and hearing on penalty for false alarms.

(1) The Department shall mail by first class mail a written notice of the false alarm fee to the permitee. The notice shall state the date and time of the false alarm, and that the permittee is entitled to a hearing to respond to the notice and introduce any evidence to refute or mitigate the determination that the false alarm occurred. All false alarm fees are due and payable within 60 days of the date that the Department mails or transmits the notice, unless: (1) an appeal is filed pursuant to subsection (B) of this section, in which case the fees appealed from are due and payable within ten days after the date of the written ruling, or (2) a waiver is requested and an alarm user class is scheduled pursuant to subsection (D) of this section.

(2) A permittee wanting to contest a false alarm fee shall file a written appeal with the Alarm Administrator within 30 days after the date of the notice. A hearing shall be held by the Alarm Administrator, or the Alarm Administrator designee, not more than 20 days from the date the appeal is filed. Within 20 days after the hearing, the Department shall issue a written ruling including factual findings and the Alarm Administrator's conclusion, with supporting reasons affirming or reversing the notice. The decision of the Alarm Administrator shall be final.

(3) The Alarm Administrator may, but is not required to, delegate authority to conduct hearings under this section to the Eureka Police Department or the Fire Department.

(4) The Alarm Administrator may, with cause, at his or her discretion, waive the first false alarm fee once within a 12 month period per alarm site. A current Eureka alarm subscriber that moves to a new address within Eureka shall receive a waiver for the first alarm at the subscriber's new location if the false alarm occurs within six months of the move.

(D) It shall be the policy of Police and Fire to take positive action in reducing false alarm responses through continuous evaluation and notification of offending alarm owners/users when false alarms occur.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

It shall be unlawful for any person to sell, install or operate any alarm system for use within the city that does not meet the minimum standards as prescribed as follows:

(A) Audible alarms.

(1) All audible alarm systems shall have a sign or notice posted on or near the system, (visible from the exterior), with the name and telephone number of the person responsible for the service and maintenance of the system. The notice shall be conspicuously posted and readable from ground level.

(2) All audible alarms, including vehicle alarms, shall be equipped with a device that will deactivate the alarm system not more than ten minutes after activation. In addition, should an alarm fail to be silenced within the time limits prescribed in this chapter, the Alarm Administrator shall have the authority to hire an alarm agent to silence the alarm. All costs and expenses incurred by the city in hiring an alarm agent to silence the alarm, costs incurred from damage to the alarm site or vehicle as a result of silencing the alarm, and costs incurred to obtain materials and security personnel to re-secure the alarm site, shall be borne by the permittee or owner.

(3) Any alarm system that has an automatic shut-off with a re-arming phase must be able to distinguish between an open and closed circuit; and, if the circuit is open, will not rearm.

(4) No audible alarm shall be installed, maintained or activated which emits the sound of a siren similar to those utilized on emergency vehicles or for civil defense disaster warnings.

(B) Alarms.

(1) No alarms shall have an automatic dialing system as defined in this chapter. This chapter does not apply to alarm devices that relay a digital coded signal to the alarm company.

(2) All alarm systems shall have a standby back-up power supply which will automatically assume operation of the alarm system should any interruption occur in the power to the system. The transfer of power from the primary source to the back-up source must occur in a manner that does not activate the alarm. Back-up power supply must be capable of at least 12 hours of operation.

(3) All silent burglar alarm systems installed after the effective date of this chapter shall have a pre-alert or pre-alarm unit allowing the user to reset the system if activated in error, before the system goes into full alarm activation. This section does not apply to banks, savings and loans and other high-risk businesses as determined by the Alarm Administrator.

(4) An alarm user shall maintain at each alarm site a set of written operating instructions for each alarm system.

(5) Homeowners shall test systems in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and shall have every household fire alarm system having a control panel tested by a qualified service technician every three years.

(C) The Alarm Administrator reserves the right to inspect all alarm systems after giving 48 hours advance warning to the permittee to ensure that the alarm standards have been met.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

(A) An alarm company responsible for monitoring services shall make two attempts to contact user or users of alarm system prior to requesting law enforcement response.

(1) Communicate any available information regarding specifics of the alarm event.

(2) Communicate a cancellation to the law enforcement communications center as soon as possible following a determination that response is unnecessary.

(B) It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in, conduct, or carry on any alarm/monitoring business within the city unless said person has first registered the intention to engage in such alarm business with the city, giving the city such information as it may require; and has displayed to the city a current valid city business license and a permit issued by the State of California, where state law requires such a permit or license.

(C) Any person engaging in, conducting, or carrying on any alarm/monitoring business within the city shall notify each alarm owner of the permit and false alarm process upon the request of installation of an alarm system and verify said notification in

writing has been signed by the alarm user. Violation of said requirement shall be considered a violation of this chapter and subject to a fine for each occurrence. (See the City of Eureka Schedule of Fees and Service Charges.)

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

Any violation of the provisions of this chapter may be prosecuted under the provisions of § 10.99 and is subject to a fee as prescribed in the City of Eureka Schedule of Fees and Service Charges.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

(A) The City Council may, from time to time, by resolution, adopt such fees and service charges for the following items, as it deems appropriate:

• (1) Alarm permit.

• (2) Reinstatement fee.

• (3) False alarm fee.

• (4) Late application fee.

• (5) Renewal fee.

(B) Any failure to pay, within 30 days of billing, any fees authorized by this chapter shall result in a penalty assessment being added.

• (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

The city shall enforce this chapter. Each violation shall constitute a separate offense. A violation of any section in this chapter is punishable as a misdemeanor or infraction, chargeable at the City Attorney's discretion pursuant to § 10.99. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

The alarm user's permit shall be posted on the premises where the alarm system is located. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

Information furnished and secured pursuant to this chapter shall be confidential in character and shall not be subject to public inspection and shall be kept so that the contents thereof shall not be known except to persons charged with the administration of this subchapter or for legitimate law enforcement needs.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

(A) Discontinuance of alarm response.

• (1) The Police and Fire Departments reserve the right to discontinue response to any location of a silent or audible alarm,

where an alarm system has been declared a public nuisance by an Alarm Administrator. An alarm system may be declared a public nuisance when all of the following conditions have been met.

• (a) The alarm user permit has been revoked due to false alarms;

• (b) The revoked alarm user permit has not been reinstated;

• (c) The cause of the false alarms has not been corrected; and

(d) If revoked, the decision of the Alarm Administrator to revoke the permit is not currently on appeal pursuant to § 103.09; or

(2) Any alarm that activates falsely more than two times per 24-hour period and is in apparent need of repair, adjustment or correction shall be deemed a nuisance by the Alarm Administrator. In order to minimize danger to emergency responders and to the public during the response of any alarm, the on-duty watch commander or fire duty chief/officer may use their discretion to discontinue additional responses. Any such decision shall be followed up by making the permittee or their alarm agent aware of the decision to discontinue response if possible. The Alarm Administrator or designee shall make the contact to relay the decision to discontinue response.

(B) Unavailability or refusal by alarm user. When an alarm user, responsible alarm agent, or property owner of an unsecured alarmed premises cannot be located or refuses the request from a police officer, fire captain, or their representative, the Police or Fire Departments shall be under no obligation to remain or secure the premises and the permittee's alarm permit may be subject to suspension or revocation.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

(A) Passage of this chapter does not in any way constitute an agreement, in fact or implied, that the Police or Fire Department must respond to an activated alarm, even though an alarm user has fully complied with this chapter.

(B) The Police and Fire Departments and the city shall not be liable in any manner whatsoever for any claim, demand or suit for damages arising out of or in any manner occasioned by connection to or use of any alarm system or device or by reason of the Police or Fire Department's failure or inability to respond to an alarm.

(Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

The provisions of this subchapter are declared to be separate and severable. The invalidity of any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or portion of this subchapter, or the invalidity of the application thereof to any person or circumstance shall not affect the validity of the remainder of this subchapter, or the validity of its application to other persons or circumstances. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)

Nothing in this chapter shall limit or preclude the enforcement of other applicable laws. (Ord. 921-C.S., passed 9-7-21)