§ 104-7. Fines.

A. 

An alarm user shall be subject to fines, depending on the number of false alarms within a registration year. Any and all fines not paid in full within 30 days of billing could result in placement of the alarm site on a suspension-of-response status. If any alarm site of an alarm user is placed on suspension-of-response status as a result of failure to pay fines, once an account is paid in full, the alarm site will be removed from suspension-of-response status. Enforcement of this chapter may be by civil action to the fullest extent allowed by applicable law. The following shall be the penalties and fines assessed pursuant to this chapter:

(1) 

Fines for false alarms in a given registration year shall be set forth in the table below (the False Alarm Fine Schedule). The False Alarm Fine Schedule is effective immediately, and any false alarms that have occurred during the registration year in which this chapter, as amended, is enacted shall be included for purposes of determining the applicable fines for any false alarms occurring after the date of the enactment of this chapter, as amended. The False Alarm Fine Schedule is subject to change upon resolution by the Legislative Council, which may base such changes on recommendations to the Legislative Council from the office of the First Selectman. The current False Alarm Fine Schedule shall be made available to the public at the Police Department.

	False Alarm Fine Schedule
	False Alarm In a Registration Year	Fine
	1	$0
	2	$25
	3	$50
	4	$50
	5	$100
	6	$100
	7	$100
	8	$200
	9	$200
	10	$250
	11	$250
	12 and beyond	$250

B. 

Any person operating an unregistered alarm system will be subject to a fine for $99. The alarm administrator shall waive this additional fine for an unregistered system if the alarm user submits an application for alarm registration within 10 days after notification of such violation.

C. 

If cancellation occurs prior to law enforcement arriving at the scene, this is not a false alarm for the purpose of fines, and no fines will be assessed.

D. 

The responding officer has the discretion to determine if the alarm was caused by circumstances outside the alarm user's control and to report a no-fault alarm to the alarm administrator, in which case no fines will be assessed.

E. 

No fees, fines or penalties, including for false alarms, shall be charged for alarm systems installed in buildings occupied by the Town of Newtown, including the Board of Education, the State of Connecticut or the United States of America. Municipal volunteer organizations, which provide emergency services to the Town of Newtown, shall also be exempt from fines, fees and penalties.

F. 

All Town of Newtown departments and agencies, including the Board of Education, shall be responsible for adhering to the registration requirements of this chapter. In addition, all Town of Newtown departments and agencies, including the Board of Education, shall be responsible for taking corrective action on false alarms and shall work in cooperation with the alarm administrator in reducing unnecessary false alarms to Town of Newtown-owned buildings or buildings occupied by Town of Newtown agencies and departments.

G. 

If the alarm user is a business or commercial entity, a failure of the alarm user to ensure that its employees are trained to operate the alarm system shall result in a fine of $99.