Sharon Ambrose
Councilmember David A. Catania
A BILL IN THE COUNCIL
OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Councilmembers David
A. Catania and Sharon Ambrose introduced the following bill, which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
To require the
licensing of security and fire alarm businesses and alarm agents in the
District of Columbia; to establish the duties of alarm businesses and of
alarm system users; to require the registration of alarm system users; to
provide for installation and equipment standards and inspections; to
provide for false alarm fines and a false alarm determination appeal
process; to establish exceptions from the requirements; and to repeal the
existing security and alarm regulation law.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE
COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as the
"Security and Fire Alarm Systems Regulations Act of 2001 ".
TITLE 1.
PURPOSE.
Sec. 101.
Purpose.
The purpose of this
act is to regulate the sale, lease, rental, installation, service,
monitoring, repair, maintenance, and use of security and fire alarm
systems and components thereof, to license security and fire alarm
businesses and agents within the boundaries of the District of Columbia,
to register alarm users, to provide for false alarm fines, and to provide
a false alarm determination appeals process.
TITLE
II. DEFINITIONS.
Sec. 201.
Definitions.
As used in this act, the term:
(1) "Alarm agent" means any employee of an alarm business
whose duties include the installing, inspecting, maintaining, servicing,
monitoring, repairing or responding to alarm systems.
(2) "Alarm business" means any person engaged in the business
of selling, leasing, renting, installing, inspecting, maintaining,
servicing, repairing, monitoring, or responding to alarm systems or
components thereof, or receiving alarm signals from an alarm user and
relaying information concerning such signals to the MPD or FEMS for
response to the scene.
(3) "Alarm system" means any device or system that transmits
a signal visibly, audibly, electronically, mechanically, or by combination
of these methods to indicate an actual or threatened fire, an actual or
attempted burglary, a robbery, an assault, or an unlawful entry at a
premises, requiring response to the scene by the MPD or the FEMS. The term
"alarm system" shall include a service activated automatically,
such as a burglary or fire alarm, and a device activated manually, such as
a holdup alarm, but shall not include telephonic lines maintained and
operated by public utilities under the regulation of the Public Service
Commission over which the signal might be transmitted.
(4) "Alarm user" means any person owning, using, or operating
an alarm system, regardless of whether the alarm system was purchased or
obtained within the boundaries of the District of Columbia,
including:
(a) The owner or lessor of any alarm system;
(b) The occupant
of any dwelling unit with an alarm system; and(c) Each tenant that uses an alarm system in a multi-tenant
building.
(5) "Central alarm station" means a facility operated by an
alarm business for the purpose of receiving alarm signals from an alarm
user and relaying information concerning such signals to the MPD or FEMS
for response to the scene.
(6) "Chief of Police" means the Chief of Police of the MPD.
(7) "Day" means calendar day, unless otherwise defined.
(8) "DCRA" means the Department of Consumer and Regulatory
Affairs of the District of Columbia.
(9) "DCRA Director" means the Director of the Department of
Consumer and Regulatory Affairs.
(10) "False alarm" means any alarm signal communicated to the
MPD or the FEMS that is not in response to an actual or threatened fire,
an actual or attempted burglary, robbery, assault, or unlawful entry
requiring an immediate MPD or FEMS response. The term "false
alarm" shall include a negligently or accidentally activated signal;
a signal that is the result of faulty, malfunctioning, or improperly
installed or maintained equipment; or a signal that is purposely activated
to summon the MPD or FEMS in non-emergency situations. The term
"false alarm" shall not include a signal willfully activated by
an alarm user upon a good faith belief that an actual or threatened fire,
an actual or attempted burglary, robbery, assault, or unlawful entry is
about to occur, or a signal activated by unusually severe weather
conditions or other causes that are identified and determined by the DCRA
Director to be beyond the control of the alarm user or of the alarm
business.
(11) "Fire
Chief" means the Chief of the FEMS.
(12) "FEMS"
means the Department of Fire and Emergency Management Services of the
District of Columbia.
(13) "MPD"
means the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of
Columbia.
(14)
"Nonresidential alarm user" means any alarm user who is not a
residential alarm user.
(15) "Notice"
means written notice served personally upon the alarm user or alarm
business, and if the alarm user or alarm business can not be found, upon a
person of proper age upon the premises, and in the absence of such alarm
user, alarm business, or person, by posting the notice in some conspicuous
place in a manner calculated to bring the notice to the attention of the
alarm user or alarm business, or by mailing first class U.S. mail, postage
prepaid ("mailed") to the premises. If notice is by posting, a
copy of the notice shall be mailed to the premises.
(16) "Person"
means any individual, firm, partnership, association, company,
corporation, or organization of any kind.
(17) "Residential
alarm user" means the occupant of any dwelling unit with an alarm
system.
(18) "Scene"
means the premises upon which a security alarm is located.
TITLE III.
REGULATIONS.
Sec. 301. Prohibition
of prerecorded transmittals.
Except for signaling
devices jointly approved by the FEMS and the Office on Aging of the
District of Columbia under the Life Safety System, no person shall
transmit or cause to be transmitted
a prerecorded message to report any fire, burglary, robbery, or
other emergency directly to MPD or FEMS by means of any telephone device,
telephone attachment, alarm system, or other device. Any person violating
this section shall be subject to a fine of up to $200 for each
offense.
Sec. 302. Licensing
of alarm businesses.
(a) No person shall
engage in the alarm business within the boundaries of the District of
Columbia without first obtaining from the DCRA Director a license to be
known as an Alarm Business License. Such license shall be required in
addition to any other license or registration required by law. Any person
who engages in the alarm business within the boundaries of the District of
Columbia without having obtained such a license shall be subject to a fine
of up to $600 for each such violation.
(b) Application for
an alarm business license shall be made to the DCRA Director on a form
prescribed by the DCRA Director. The information provided by each
applicant shall be under oath and shall include the following:
(1) The name,
address, and telephone number of the applicant;(2) The name,
address, and telephone number of the alarm business, the type of business
organization, and the names and addresses of the president,
vice-president, secretary, treasurer, manager, or other principal officer
responsible for the operation of the business or local branch of the
business, as applicable; and(3) A signed
statement that, if the applicant plans to install, inspect, maintain,
repair, service, monitor, or respond to any alarm system, the applicant
must comply with the provisions of Section 304 of this act.
(c) Each person whose name
is required to be listed on the application shall furnish the DCRA
Director with a set of his or her fingerprints, which shall become part of
the application and shall be compared and recorded by the Chief of Police.
The Chief of Police shall submit such fingerprints to the Federal Bureau
of Investigation and to such other authorities as the Chief of Police may
deem advisable for comparison and record checking, and shall make such
other investigation as the Chief of Police determines to be relevant. The
Chief of Police shall cause such fingerprints to be returned to the MPD
upon completion and record checking by other agencies. The Chief of Police
shall report the results of the investigation to the DCRA Director, who
shall determine whether a license shall be issued.
(d) Each application
required by this section shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee to be
established by the DCRA Director; provided, that such fee shall, in the
judgment of the DCRA Director, reimburse the District for the cost of
services provided under this act. The term of the license shall be
determined by the DCRA Director.
(e) An alarm business
license may be denied, suspended, or revoked upon any of the following
grounds:
(1) That the applicant
made a false statement of material fact in his or her application;(2) That the applicant
or licensee has violated any provision of this act or any other applicable
act or regulation governing such licenses; or(3) That the applicant
or licensee or other person specified in subsection (b) of this section
has been convicted of a felony within the last 10 years, or of a
misdemeanor involving unlawful entry or the unlawful taking of the
property of another within the last 5 years, unless the DCRA
Director determines that the issuance or continuance of a license would
not constitute a significant risk to the community. The DCRA Director
shall consider the following factors in determining whether a significant
risk exists:(A) The nature of the
crime and its relationship to the duties and circumstances of
participation in the alarm business;(B) Information
pertaining to the degree of rehabilitation of the convicted
person; and(C) The time elapsed
since conviction.(4) That the
licensee:(A) Failed to perform
installation, repairs, maintenance or other work in a workmanlike
manner;(B) Regularly provided
customers faulty, defective, or malfunctioning equipment;(C) Requested an MPD or
FEMS response to an alarm signal when the alarm user had not authorized
the alarm business to make the request;(D) Requested an MPD or
FEMS response to an alarm signal when the alarm business had been notified
that the alarm user has not:(i) Registered its alarm system under Section 306;
(ii) Paid a false alarm
response fee due under Section 401 or appealed the false alarm under
Section 403; or(iii) Conformed its
alarm system to District installation standards under Section 307;(E) Did
not comply with procedures for requesting an MPD or FEMS response to
an alarm signal established by rule or regulation;(F) Submitted false information on an Alarm Business License application;
(G) Entered into a
contract regarding its business in the District with an alarm business
that does not have a valid Alarm Business License;(H) Violated any other
provision of this act, or any other law, rule or regulation relating to
the sale, lease, installation, service, monitoring, repair, use or
maintenance of alarm systems.
(f) The DCRA Director,
may deny the license, or may suspend or revoke any license in accordance
with the provisions of this act, by notifying the applicant or licensee in
writing and setting forth reasons authorized by subsection (e) of this
section for the denial, suspension, or revocation. The DCRA Director may
order a suspension for a period not to exceed 6 months. Any person whose
license has been revoked may not apply for reissuance until 6 months after
the date of revocation. Reissuance shall be subject to payment of the same
fee required for obtaining an original license.
(g) Whenever the DCRA
Director proposes to deny, suspend, or revoke a license, he or she shall
serve upon the applicant or licensee written notice which shall:
(1) State the nature of
the proposed action;(2) Set forth the facts
which constitute the basis for the proposed action; and(3) Advise the
applicant or licensee that he or she has the opportunity to submit
information within 10 days of service of the notice of proposed action,
bearing on such proposed
action for consideration by the DCRA Director.
(h) In conjunction with
the authority granted by this section, the DCRA Director shall have the
authority to enter into agreements of assurance of compliance or
discontinuance prior, or as an alternative, to denial, suspension, or
revocation of a license.
(i) Prior to any final
action by the DCRA Director to suspend or revoke a license pursuant to
this section, the license shall remain effective until its normal
expiration date.
(j) Any person upon
whom a notice has been served may file with the Board of Appeals and
Review, established by Mayor’s Order No. 96-27, dated March 5, 1996, a
written demand for a hearing. Any such hearing shall be held in accordance
with the provisions of the District of Columbia Administrative Procedure
Act, approved October 21, 1968 (82 Stat. 1204; D.C. Official Code §2-501 et.
seq) ("Administrative
Procedure Act") and the Rules of the Board of Appeals and Review, or
any successor agency.
Sec. 303. Licensing of
alarm agents.
(a) No person shall act
as an alarm agent within the boundaries of the District of Columbia
without first obtaining from the DCRA Director a license to be known as an
Alarm Agent License. A person to whom an alarm business license has been
issued may obtain an Alarm Agent License without payment of any additional
license fee. Any person who violates this section shall be subject to a
fine pursuant to Section 302 of this act. Alarm Agent Licenses shall be
issued in the form of an identification card.
(b) Application for an
Alarm Agent License shall be made to the DCRA Director on a form
prescribed by the DCRA Director. The information provided by the applicant
shall be under oath and shall include the following:
(1) The name, address, and
telephone number of the applicant;(2) The name, address,
and telephone number of the alarm business by whom the applicant is
employed; and(3) A signed statement
by the owner or manager of the particular alarm business indicating that
the applicant is an employee of the named alarm business.
(c) Each applicant for
an Alarm Agent License shall furnish the DCRA Director with a set
of his or her fingerprints, which shall be processed in the manner set
forth in section 302(c) of this act.
(d) Each application
required by this section shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee to be
established by the DCRA Director; provided, that such fee shall, in the
judgment of the DCRA Director reimburse the District for the cost of
services provided under this act. The term of the license shall be
determined by the DCRA Director.
(e) Each alarm agent
whose duties include the installing, inspecting, maintaining, servicing,
repairing, monitoring, or responding to alarm systems, shall carry on his
or her person at all times while engaged in such duties a valid license
identification card. The identification card shall include the name of the
alarm agent, a photograph of the alarm agent, and an identification
number, and shall be displayed upon request. Identification cards are not
transferable and must be surrendered within 5 business days to the DCRA
Director upon termination of employment as an alarm agent or suspension or
revocation of the licensee’s license.
(f) An Alarm Agent
License shall be subject to denial, suspension, or revocation on the
grounds set forth in section 302 of this act. Procedures for the denial,
suspension revocation of such
a license shall be as set forth in section 302.
(g) Any license issued
pursuant to this section shall be issued as a Class A Inspected Sales and
Services endorsement to a master business license under the master
business license system as set forth in subchapter I-A of Chapter 28 of
Title 47.
Sec. 304. Duties of
alarm businesses.
(a) An alarm business
shall maintain in a secure and confidential manner records of all
sales, leases, rentals, or installations of alarm systems and of all
service calls for alarm systems. The records shall include the name of the
alarm user, the address of the premises at which the alarm system is
located, the date of installation or service call, and such other
information as the DCRA Director may require. The records shall be made
available to the DCRA Director at all times. The records shall be
maintained for a period of no less than one calendar year, and specific
records may be required to be maintained for a longer period by the DCRA
Director.
(b)(1) An alarm business
shall provide to an alarm user complete oral and written instructions and
demonstrations in the proper care and use of any alarm or alarm system
sold to or installed for an alarm user.
(2) Warranties provided
by an alarm business to an alarm user shall be in writing and shall
include certification that the alarm system meets the appropriate
installation and equipment standards as established by the DCRA Director.
Alarm businesses shall also provide alarm users with copies of written
warranties by the manufacturer that are enforceable by the alarm
user.(3) An alarm business
shall inform alarm users that the use of alarms within the boundaries of
the District of Columbia is governed by District law.(4) Upon the sale,
lease, or installation of an alarm system, an alarm business shall obtain
from the alarm user a written acknowledgment that the requirements set
forth in this subsection have been met. Such acknowledgment shall be
signed by the alarm user and maintained as part of the records required to
be kept by subsection (a) of this section.
(c) An alarm business
who contracts with an alarm user to respond to the scene of an alarm
activation shall post on the premises, in a conspicuous place visible from
outside the premises, a sticker or other sign indicating the name and
telephone number of the alarm business. When an alarm system has been
activated, the alarm business shall have an alarm agent present at the
premises within one hour after being requested to do so by the MPD or FEMS,
unless good cause is shown.
(d) Alarm businesses
have an affirmative duty to train and supervise alarm agents in their
employ. Any alarm business which installs, inspects, maintains, repairs,
services, monitors, or responds to any alarm system must employ or
otherwise engage the services of at least one person who possesses, at a
minimum, a current Master Electrician Limited License which is valid in
the District.
(e) Alarm businesses
shall not request MPD or FEMS response to the premises of an unregistered
alarm user unless the alarm system has been intentionally activated by a
person in response to actual or threatened fire or criminal
activity.
Sec. 305. Duties of
alarm users.
(a) An alarm user shall
not cause or permit any false alarm.
(b) It shall be the
responsibility of an alarm user to instruct any employees or others who may
have occasion to activate an alarm that alarm systems are to be activated
only in emergency situations to summon an immediate MPD or FEMS response.
An alarm user shall also instruct appropriate employees as to the
operation of the alarm system, including the setting, activation. and
resetting of the alarm system.
(c) An alarm user
shall be responsible for seeing that alarm systems are maintained in good
working order and that defects are promptly repaired.
(d) An alarm user who
has not contracted with an alarm business for an alarm agent to respond to
the scene of alarm activations shall indicate the telephone numbers of at
least 2 responsible persons, who are capable of deactivating and resetting
the alarm system and of assisting the MPD or FEMS to secure the premises
if necessary, and who may be notified by the MPD or FEMS to respond to the
scene, by either:
(1) Posting the names
of such persons on a sticker or other sign on the premises in a
conspicuous place visible from outside the premises; or(2) Filing the names
with the DCRA Director. Such person or persons shall respond to the scene
within one hour after being requested to do so by MPD or FEMS, unless good
cause is shown.
Sec. 306. Registration
of alarm users.
(a) Every alarm user
shall register the user’s alarm system with the DCRA Director and shall
pay a nonrefundable alarm user registration fee to be determined by the
DCRA Director. Alarm users must register their alarm system within 180
days after the establishment of this alarm user registration fee as
determined by the DCRA Director.
(b) The DCRA Director
shall determine the term of such registration and the information to be
provided on the registration application. Registration may be accomplished
by mail using a registration application form prescribed by the DCRA
Director.
(c) The DCRA Director
shall establish procedures, by rulemaking, for:
(1) Alarm users to
register by mail;(2) Alarm businesses to
issue District alarm user registration forms; and(3) The return of
completed registration forms and registration fees to the DCRA
Director.
(d) The DCRA Director
shall establish a residential alarm user registration fee and a
nonresidential alarm user registration fee.
(e) The DCRA Director
may revoke an alarm user’s registration after 10 false alarms in a
calendar year. Alarm users shall be permitted to re-register only after
the alarm system has been inspected by an alarm business and certified as
conforming to all system installation and equipment standards.
Sec. 307. Installation
and equipment standards; inspections.
(a) The DCRA Director
shall establish alarm system installation and equipment standards by
rulemaking within 180 days after enactment of this act. An alarm system
installed after January 1, 2002, must meet the installation standards.
Alarm businesses, agents, and users must comply with these alarm system
installation and equipment standards within 180 days after their
establishment.
(b) An alarm business
must certify in writing to the alarm user that any alarm systems installed
after January 1, 2002, meet the installation and equipment standards as
set by the DCRA Director at the time of installation, service, monitoring,
repair or maintenance.
(c) An alarm user must
have its alarm system inspected by an alarm business after 3 false alarms
from the system in a calendar year. Within 20 days after notice of
receiving a third false alarm from the DCRA Director, the alarm user must
have the alarm business certify to the alarm user and to the DCRA Director
that the system has been inspected and meets the installation and
equipment standards as set by the DCRA Director.
(d) No person shall
install or maintain an audible alarm system which emits sounds capable
of being mistakenly identified as that of an emergency vehicle siren or
civil defense warning siren.
(e) The MPD and FEMS are
authorized to deactivate any exterior audible alarm system which continues
to emit a sound for more than 30 minutes.
(f) No person shall
install or maintain an alarm system that does not have a safeguard to halt
or recall an accidental alarm activation before the alarm is communicated
to MPD or FEMS for response to the scene.
(g) The DCRA Director,
the Chief of Police, and the Fire Chief are authorized to inspect the
facilities of any alarm business, central alarm station, or alarm user
during reasonable business hours to determine whether the requirements of
this act are being met. Information obtained pursuant to such inspections
shall be kept confidential and used only in conjunction with the
enforcement of this act.
TITLE IV. FINES, FEES,
NOTICES OF INFRACTION, APPEALS
Sec. 401. False alarm
response fine.
(a) The MPD and FEMS
shall serve each residential or nonresidential alarm user with a notice
of infraction, informing the user of the response and that the alarm was
not based upon an actual or attempted fire or criminal act.
(b) The MPD and FEMS
shall report to the DCRA Director each false alarm to which the respective
agency responded, with information corroborating the address, date, time,
and circumstances as available from records kept in the ordinary course of
business by each agency.
(c) The DCRA Director
shall collect a false alarm response fine from the alarm user for each
false alarm from the user’s alarm system that exceeds 3 in a calendar
year, unless the fine is waived by the DCRA Director for good cause, and
require an inspection by the alarm business of the user’s alarm system.
The DCRA Director shall establish conditions, including alarm signals
caused by severe weather, under which the fine shall be waived.
(d) The DCRA Director
shall establish the false alarm response fines.
(e) The DCRA Director,
in consultation with the MPD and FEMS, shall establish procedures for an
alarm business to request an MPD or FEMS response to an alarm signal,
including procedures to verify an alarm signal before requesting an MPD or
FEMS response. An alarm business must comply with these procedures when
the business requests an MPD or FEMS response to an alarm signal.
(f) An alarm user may
recover a false alarm response fine from the alarm business that sold,
leased, installed, serviced, repaired, maintained, or monitored the user’s
alarm system if the false alarm is the result of:
(1) Faulty, defective,
or malfunctioning equipment supplied by the alarm business;(2) Improper
installation, service, repair, or maintenance by the alarm business;
or(3) Improper monitoring
by the alarm business.
Sec. 402. Collection of
fines and fees.
(a) All fines,
collateral, and fees collected pursuant to this act shall be paid into the
General Fund of the District of Columbia.
(b) DCRA shall be
responsible for the collection of all license fees, registration fees, and
false alarm response fines pursuant to this act.
(c) The District of
Columbia shall have a lien upon any amount due and payable as a false
alarm response fine pursuant to this act. However, no lien shall be
effective unless;
(1) The District shall
have filed in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds of the District of
Columbia, in a docket provided for such liens, a written statement
containing the name and address of the violator and the date and
approximate place of the infraction; and(2) The District shall
have given notice of the filing of such lien to the violator. Thereafter,
the District is authorized to file suit in the amount of its lien.
Sec. 403. Appeal of
false alarm determination.
An alarm user may appeal
the original determination by the MPD or FEMS that an alarm signal was a
false alarm to the DCRA Director within 30 days after notice of a false
alarm is served. The DCRA Director shall set filing fees, by rulemaking,
for appeals by alarm users. The DCRA Director may make a summary
determination upon the record or may refer the appeal for a written report
and recommendation. The DCRA Director shall decide the appeal.
Sec. 404. Penalties
generally.
(a) Civil fines,
penalties, and fees may be imposed as alternative sanctions for any infraction of the provisions of this act, or any rules or regulations
issued under the authority of this act,
pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 2. Adjudication of any infraction of this
act shall be
pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 2.
(b) The MPD and the FEMS shall not respond to an alarm signal from an
unregistered
alarm system if the alarm user has not, after notice:
(1) Registered the user’s alarm system under section 306;
(2) Paid an alarm response fee due under section 401 or appealed
the false alarm under section 403; or(3) Conformed its alarm system to District installation standards
established under section 307.
(c) Notwithstanding any
other provision of this act, MPD and FEMS may respond to an alarm signal
if they are notified that the alarm system has been intentionally
activated by a person in response to an actual or threatened fire or
criminal activity.
TITLE V.
EXCEPTIONS.
Sec. 501.
Exceptions.
This act shall not
apply to:
(1) The use of alarm
systems by law enforcement personnel for law enforcement purposes;
(2) Alarm systems
installed in motor vehicles, boats, or aircraft;
(3) Alarm systems which
do not communicate directly or indirectly with MPD or FEMS to request a
MPD or FEMS response but which are designed solely to alert personnel or
others directly connected with or employed by the owner or operator of the
protected premises or an agency that is required to respond to the scene
of the activation prior to initiating a call for MPD or FEMS;
(4) Persons engaged
solely in the manufacture or sale of alarm systems or components thereof
from a fixed location;
(5) Telephone answering
services that receive alarm activation signals and relay information
to the MPD or FEMS but do not function in any other manner as an agency or
alarm business;
(6) Electricians who may
have occasion to deal with electrical components of alarm systems and who
are not alarm businesses or alarm agents or acting in any such capacity;
or
(7) Alarm system used,
operated, or installed in any premises or place owned, leased, occupied,
or under the control of the government of the United States or the
District of Columbia, nor to any officer, agent, or employee of either
government while acting or employed in his or her official capacity.
TITLE VI. RULES
Sec. 601. In accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act, the
DCRA Director shall issue such rules and procedures as necessary to
implement this act.
TITLE VII. REPEALER.
Sec. 701. The Security and Fire Alarm Systems Regulations Act of 1980,
effective September 26, 1980 (D.C. Law 3-107, D.C. Official Code §7-2801
et seq.) is repealed.
TITLE VIII. FISCAL
IMPACT STATEMENT.
Sec. 801. The Council
adopts the fiscal impact statement in the Committee Report as the fiscal
impact statement required by section 602(c)(3) of the District of Columbia
Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Code
§1-206.02(C)(3).
TITLE IX. EFFECTIVE
DATE.
Sec. 901. This act shall
take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by
the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of
Congressional review as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of
Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C.
Code §1-206.02(c)(1), and publication in the District of Columbia
Register.