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Home My WebLink AboutNS-2127 - Amending Section 14-38 to Provide Amount of Penalty Assessments... 355 REL: 4/26/91 ORDINANCE NO. NS-2127 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA AMENDING SECTION 14-38 TO PROVIDE THAT THE AMOUNT OF THE PENALTY ASSESSMENTS FOR ACCIDENTAL ALARMS RECEIVED BY THE SANTA ANA FIRE DEPARTMENT SHALL BE SET BY RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1: That section 14-38 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 14-38. Accidental alarms (section 11.303). Section 11.303 is added to the Uniform Fire Code, to read as follows: Section 11. 303. (a) As used herein, the following terms shall have the following meanings: "accidental alarm" means an alarm, message, signal, or notice received by the fire department as a result of the failure of a fire alarm system to function properly. "manually activated alarm system" means a non-residential alarm system which is activated while the business is open and/or occupied and activated by the deliberate acts of an employee, or a residential alarm system designed to be activated by a tenant from within a residential unit. It does not include manual pull stations activated from areas accessible to the public. "automatic alarm system" means an alarm system other than a manually activated alarm system. It does not include manual pull stations activated from areas accessible to the public. (b) When accidental alarms are received by the fire department, the fire chief is authorized to demand that the user of the responsible fire alarm system correct, replace, or disconnect such system. (c) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) of this section, any person having an alarm system which results in a fire department response in which the alarm proves to be an accidental alarm shall pay a penalty assessment fee to the city as follows: 1 ORDINANCE NS-2127 PAGE 2 ,357 (1) Accidental alarms received by the city fire department from automatic alarm systems which are in excess of the maximum allowable number, as set forth in paragraph (3) of this subsection, shall result in an automatic alarm penalty assessment in such amount as shall be set by resolution of the city council. (2) Alarms from manually activated alarm systems which are in excess of the maximum allowable number of false alarms, as set forth in paragraph (3) of this subsection, shall result in a manually activated alarm penalty assessment in such amount as shall be set by resolution of the city council. (3) Penalty assessments shall be made for accidental alarms which number more than one (1) in any thirty-day period; or more than two (2) within any ninety-day period; or more than three (3) within anyone-year period. (d) commencing with the date of a new alarm installation and continuing until the date six (6) months thereafter, or until there have been three accidental alarms from such new alarm installation, whichever first occurs, subsection (c) of this section shall not apply to accidental alarms from such new alarm installation. (e) The fire chief reserves the right to discontinue response by fire department personnel to any location of a silent or audible alarm when: (1) The alarm user has been given written notice and assessed six (6) penalty assessments within a one-year period; or (2) The alarm user has failed to pay any such penalty assessment. Reinstatement may occur when the alarm user has taken steps to eliminate or correct the problem(s) and has documented the corrective action in writing to the fire chief. SECTION 2: Until such time as otherwise provided by resolution of the city council, accidental alarm penalty assessments under section 14-38 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code, as amended by Section 1 of this ordinance, shall be as follows: The automatic alarm penalty assessment shall be $50.00. The manually activated alarm penalty assessment shall be $100.00. 2 ORDINANCE NS-2127 PAGE 3 359 SECTION 3: If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or \ 'unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance. The city Council of the city of Santa Ana hereby declares that it would have adopted this ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion thereof irrespective of the fact that anyone or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases, or portions be declared invalid or unconstitutional. SECTION 4: Neither the adoption of this ordinance nor the repeal hereby of any ordinance shall in any manner affect the prosecution for violation of ordinances, which violations were committed prior to the effective date hereof, nor be construed as affecting any of the provisions of such ordinance relating to the collection of any such license or penalty or the penal provision applicable to any violation thereof, nor to affect the validity of any bond or cash deposit in lieu thereof, required to be posted, filed or deposited pursuant to any ordinance and all rights and obligations thereunder appertaining shall continue in full force and effect. ADOPTED this 3rd day of June 199~ ATTEST: ~.u ;-c. $.(y- a.~ce C. Guy / Clerk of the Council COUNCILMEMBERS: Young Pulido Acosta Griset McGuigan Norton Richardson Aye Aye Aye Ave Absent Ave Ave APPROVED AS TO FORM: ~ Edward J oper city Attorney 3 '-- 360 CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY & PUBLICATION state of California County of Orange I, JANICE C. GUY, Clerk of the Council, do hereby certify the attached Ordinance NoS - ,;} I.P 7 to be the original ordinance adopted by the City Council of the City of Santa Ana on ~r 3-1/ ; and that said ordinance was published in accordance with the Charter of the city of Santa Ana. f!t, .. ':7': ~ .. /(./q I lerk of the co~nci , Dat: City of Santa Ana