Village of East Hampton

Chapter 62: ALARM SYSTEMS

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of East Hampton 6-17-1988 by L.L. No. 10-1988 (Ch. 5 of the 1971 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire regulations — See Ch. 150.
Noise — See Ch. 196.

§ 62-1. Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to establish standards and controls for the various types of fire, intrusion, holdup and other emergency signals from fire and police alarm devices that require Fire Department or police response, investigation or safeguarding of property at the location of an event reported by a signal which is transmitted by telephone or radio to the Police or Fire Department from a central station as hereafter defined.

§ 62-2. Definitions.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

ALARM INSTALLATION — Any fire or police alarm device or aggregation of fire or police alarm devices installed on or within a single building or on or within more than one building, or area adjacently located on a common site, at a specific location.

BUSINESS LICENSEE — Any business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity which is in the business of owning, operating, maintaining, installing, leasing or selling a fire or police alarm device or devices or system of fire or police alarm devices, which business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity is, as owner, operator, provider of maintenance service, installer, lessor or seller of said device, devices or system of devices, subject to the license requirements of this chapter.

CENTRAL ALARM STATION — Any facility operated by a private firm that owns or leases a system of fire or police alarm devices, which facility is manned by operators who receive, record or validate alarm signals and relay information about such validated signals to the Police or Fire Department when appropriate.

DIAL ALARM — Any fire or police alarm device which is a telephone device or telephone attachment that automatically or electronically selects a telephone line connected to a central alarm station or police headquarters and reproduces a prerecorded message to report a criminal act or other emergency requiring Police or Fire Department response.

DIRECT ALARM — Any fire or police alarm device connected directly by leased telephone wires from the specific location to police headquarters.

LICENSING AUTHORITY — The Incorporated Village of East Hampton. [Added 7-31-1992 by L.L. No. 16-1992]

§ 62-3. Registration required; license or permit. Editor's Note: Original

§5-3, Licensing authority, was repealed 7-31-1992 by L.L. No. 15, 1992. [Added 7-31-1992 by L.L. No. 16-1992] A. No business licensee as defined herein shall conduct business in the Incorporated Village of East Hampton unless he or it holds a current validly issued license issued by the State of New York pursuant to Article 6-D of the General Business Law. B. All business licensees who conduct or propose to conduct business in the Incorporated Village of East Hampton shall register with the licensing authority prior to conducting said business. In connection with said registration, all business licensees shall supply the following information: (1) A true copy of the license issued by the State of New York pursuant to Article 6-D of the General Business Law.

(2) The names and addresses of all employees of the business licensee who will be conducting the business of said business licensee in the Incorporated Village of East Hampton. C. Any property owner or lessee of property in the Village of East Hampton having on his or its premises a fire or police alarm device or system of fire or police alarm devices shall apply to the licensing authority for a permit to own or otherwise have such a device on his or its premises. The application shall contain provisions relating to the device or system of devices installed or to be installed on the premises. Application for permits for fire or police alarm devices existing in premises on the effective date Editor's Note: The effective date of this chapter is October 1, 1992. of this chapter must be made to the licensing authority. No such device may be installed on the premises of the owner or lessee after the effective date of this chapter prior to the licensing authority having issued a permit to such owner or lessee, and no presently existing fire or police alarm device complying with the provisions of this chapter shall be modified after the effective date of this chapter prior to the licensing authority having issued a permit to such owner or lessee. Such permit need not be obtained on an annual basis but shall be obtained each time a device or system is to be installed or modified.

Editor's Note: Original §§ 5-4, License and permit applications, and 5-5, License fees, which immediately followed this subsection, were repealed 7-31-1992 by L.L. No. 15-1992.

§ 62-4. User fees. There shall be payable to the Village of East Hampton a fee of $2 per month for a fire or police alarm device or devices installed on the premises of any owner or lessee. Such user fee shall be payable in the first instance by the business licensee who services the fire or police alarm device or devices of the owner or lessee, but upon the failure of the business licensee to make such payments when they become due, the owner or lessee of the premises shall thereupon become liable for any unpaid user fees. Such user fees shall be paid to the Village Treasurer monthly in advance on the first day of each month. Upon failure to make any such payment, the Village shall have the right to proceed by civil action to collect such user fees. Failure to make any such payment after written notice thereof has been given to the owner or lessee shall subject such owner or lessee to the penalty provisions of this chapter.

§ 62-5. Denial, suspension or revocation of license or permit. A license issued under this chapter may be suspended or revoked by the licensing authority after notice and hearing by the licensing authority for the violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or of any regulation or regulations promulgated by the licensing authority pursuant to this chapter, and any license or identification card issued hereunder shall be surrendered immediately to the licensing authority upon such suspension or revocation. No part of a license fee shall be refunded when a license is suspended or revoked. Any applicant whose application for a license or permit has been denied, or any business licensee, owner or lessee whose license has been suspended or revoked by the licensing authority may appeal such denial, suspension or revocation in writing to the Board of Trustees within 30 days after the date of denial or of the notice of suspension or revocation and may appear before such Board of Trustees at a time and place to be determined by the Board of Trustees in support of his or its contention that the license should not have been denied, suspended or revoked.

§ 62-6. Maintenance of records. Every business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity conducting the business of owning, operating, installing, leasing or selling fire or police alarm devices within the Village of East Hampton shall maintain complete and accurate records of all installations of alarm systems in the Village of East Hampton and shall provide such records on a monthly basis for the licensing authority.

§ 62-7. General requirements; false alarm charges; enforcement.

A. Restrictions. No fire or police alarm device shall be connected directly to the Village of East Hampton police headquarters or Fire Department. Any fire or police device which is connected directly to police headquarters or the Fire Department by a telephone or radio signal shall be disconnected no later than January 1, 1979. In addition, any police or fire alarm device which is a telephone device that automatically dials the East Hampton Village Police Department or Fire Department and reproduces a prerecorded message which reports a criminal act or fire requiring Police and/or Fire Department response will, from this date forward, be illegal. Any person, business, firm, corporation or other commercial entity, which operates, maintains, installs, leases or sells said device, fine. Also, any dial alarm, as above described, now in existence shall be removed by January 1, 1979.

B. Direct alarm system. Any private firm engaged in the business of burglar alarms or fire alarms and licensed by the Village of East Hampton will operate a facility which is manned by a trained operator who receives, records or validates alarm signals and relays information about such validated signals to the East Hampton Village Police Department or the EasHampton Village Fire Department and, when appropriate, notifies the Police Department and Fire Department on a special telephone number set aside for the express purpose of receiving such information. All central station alarm facilities shall have the capability to electrically supervise all alarm systems so that a trouble signal is indicated should there be a fault with any alarm system. The operator of any central alarm company which calls police headquarters or the Fire Department to report an active alarm will identify him or herself by name and the name of the company and will provide accurate directions to the protected premises at which the alarm is sounding. The central alarm company shall further provide the name of a caretaker who is responsible for resetting an activated alarm if the property owner or lessee of the property is away. In the event that the caretaker is unavailable, the alarm company shall be responsible for resetting an activated alarm.

C. Audible alarm device. Any property owner or lessee of property in the Village of East Hampton shall, prior to the installation of any audible signal designed to notify persons within audible range of the signal, obtain a permit for same. Any such alarm device which operates on house current must be equipped with a standby battery power supply sufficient for at least 24 hours. Any such alarm device will incorporate a device whereby the system will automatically shut off and/or reset the audible alarm after the alarm has sounded for a maximum period of 30 minutes. All property owners or lessees having such an alarm device on their premises shall further be required to provide the Police Department and Fire Department with the name of a person who can respond to the premises within a reasonable time. Said person shall have the capability of securing or, in the case of fire, opening up said premises for inspection by the Fire Department. Every such audible alarm device must be equipped with a switch to silence the audible alarm bell at the residence.

D. False alarm. It shall be a violation of this chapter to cause a false alarm, and any person who does cause a false alarm shall be subject to the penalty provisions hereof.

E. Charges for false emergency alarms. [Amended 5-21-1999 by L.L. No. 5-1999]

(1) Any owner or lessee of property having a fire or police alarm device or system of fire or police alarm devices on his or its premises on the effective date of this chapter and any user of services or equipment furnished by a licensee under this law shall pay to the Village a charge for each and every false emergency alarm to which the Police or Fire Department responds, in each calendar year, as follows:

(a) First false emergency alarm each calendar year: no charge.

(b) Second false emergency alarm in each calendar year: $50.

(d) All false emergency alarms over five in each calendar year: $250.

(2) The above charges shall be paid to the Village Treasurer. Failure to pay any such charges shall subject such owner, lessee or user to the penalty provisions of this chapter. F. Rules, regulations and enforcement. The licensing authority shall promulgate rules, regulations and standards which shall be approved by the Board of Trustees, which may be necessary for the purpose of assuring the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of fire or police alarm devices and alarm installations owned, operated, maintained, installed, leased or sold by a licensee under this chapter and to facilitate the administration of this chapter. The licensing authority shall administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter. The aforesaid rules, regulations and standards shall be set forth in writing an copies shall be available for applicants.

§ 62-8. Central alarm station systems; exceptions; severability.

A. Central alarm station systems. The licensing authority is hereby authorized to prescribe the location and the manner of installation of regular business telephone lines into police headquarters from a central alarm station for the express purpose of providing direct telephone communication between a central alarm station and police headquarters for use in reporting alarms.

B. Exceptions. None of the provisions of this chapter shall apply to a fire or police alarm device or devices installed in a motor vehicle or trailer.

C. Severability. If any part or parts of this chapter are for any reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter. The Board of Trustees hereby declares that it would have passed the local law enacting this chapter and each section, subsection, sentence, clause and phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases might be declared invalid.

§ 62-9. Penalties for offenses.
Any person, firm or corporation who does not pay any charge or fee established in this chapter, or who violates any provision of this chapter, shall be subject to a fine not in excess of $250 for each offense. A separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each day during which a violation occurs or is committed, and such violation may constitute disorderly conduct, in which event such person shall be a disorderly person.

Village of East Hampton,Chapter 62: Alarm Systems