False alarm ordinance watch

Beavercreek, Ohio--According to the Xenia Gazette, the City Council in Beavercreek recently approved a false alarm ordinance in an effort to reduce the number of false burglar and fire alarms and conserve resources. The ordinance, which went into effect Oct. 1, allows the first three false alarms with no fee assessed. The fourth false alarm calls for a fee of $50, the fifth for a fee of $100, while the sixth through 12th demand a fee of $200. A disconnection request is made after 12 false alarms. Hartford, Conn. The Hartford Courant on Sept. 28 reported that the town council in Bloomfield recently voted in a false alarm ordinance to try and cut down on the surprising number of false alarms they had been receiving (501 out of 749 over the last three months). Owners of private alarm systems had 90 days from the passing of the ordinance to register their system with authorities. A schedule of fines for repeated false alarms is in place to enforce the ordinance. Owners are warned for the first two false alarms, a third results in a $25 fine; the fourth costs $50; five or more will cost $90 a piece. Pittsburg, Calif. According to the San Jose Mercury News, the city of Pittsburg, in hopes of curtailing the number of false alarms responded to by police, has begun requiring that all private alarm systems be registered. Use permits will cost $65 for residential and $95 for businesses, annually. Police say that enforcing registration will save time and money. The ordinance, voted into action by the town council on Sept. 15, calls for fines to be assessed for repeated false alarms. A fine of $250 will be assessed for each false alarm from an unregistered system. Registered systems get a warning for the first two false alarms in a year. Subsequent false alarms earn a $250 dollar fine. A previous ordinance fined system owners $100 for the first false alarm, $150 for the second and $250 for each additional violation within the same year.