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5381Y ORDINANCE NO. 5381 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ANAHEIM ADDING CHAPTER 16.35 TO TITLE 16 OF THE ANAHEIM MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO FALSE ALARMS WHEREAS, the occurrence of false alarms requiring a response from the Anaheim Fire Department needlessly diverts limited resources from legitimate emergencies; and WHEREAS, the City Council desires to establish a system of fees to recoup City incurred costs associated with unnecessary responses. NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ANAHEIM DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. That new Chapter 16.35 be, and the same is hereby, added to Title 16 of the Anaheim Municipal Code, to read as follows: "CHAPTER 16.35 FALSE ALARMS - FIRE DEPARTMENT 16.35.010 Definitions. As used in this Chapter: .101 'Alarm' means the giving, signalling or transmission to any public fire station or company or to any officer or employee thereof, whether by telephone, spoken word or otherwise, information to the effect that a fire or emergency situation exists at or near the place indicated by the person giving, signalling or transmitting such information. .020 'Automatic Fire Sprinkler System' means an integrated system of underground and overhead piping designed in accordance with fire protection standards, and which is normally activated by heat from a fire, and discharges water over the fire area. .030 'City' means the City of Anaheim, California. .040 'City Council' means the legislative body of the City. .050 'False alarm' means an alarm necessitating response by the Anaheim Fire Department where a fire or emergency situation does not exist. .060 'Fire alarm system' means a system consisting of a control unit and a combination of electrical interconnected devices designed and intended to detect a fire condition and to actuate an alarm or warning of fire in a building or structure by either manual or automatic activation, or both, and includes the systems installed throughout any building or portion thereof. .070 'Fire Chief' means the Fire Chief of the City, or his designee. .080 'Notice' means written notice, given by personal service upon the addressee, or given by the United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the person to be notified at his last known address. Service of such notice shall be effective upon the completion of personal service, or upon the placing of the same in the custody of the united States Postal Service. .090 'Person' means any natural person, firm, partnership, association or corporation. 16.35.020 Testing Alarm. Persons shall notify the Anaheim Fire Department through the North Net Joint Powers Communications Center prior to any service, test, repair, maintenance, adjustment, alterations, or installations of automatic fire sprinkler or fire alarm systems which might activate a false alarm, which would normally result in an emergency response. Any alarm activated where such prior notice has been given shall not constitute a false alarm for purposes of this Chapter. 16.35.030 Fees Imposed. The following fees are hereby imposed regarding false fire alarms: .010 The owner or lessee of any premises containing a fire alarm system shall be assessed a fee as provided in this Chapter for each false alarm in excess of two (2) occurring within any thirty (30) day period, or in excess of three (3) occurring within any six (6) month period. .020 The owner or lessee of any premises containing an automatic fire sprinkler system or fire alarm system shall be assessed a fee as provided in this Chapter for any false alarm activated following a failure to notify the Fire Department prior to service, testing, repair, maintenance, adjustment, alterations, or installation of automatic sprinkler systems or alarm systems. I .030 Any person who intentionally initiates or reports an alarm where no fire or emergency situation exists shall be assessed a fee as provided in this Chapter. 16.35.050 City Council to Set Fees. The City Council shall by resolution establish the amount of all fees imposed pursuant to this Chapter which fees shall constitute debts owing to the City of Anaheim. 16.35.050 Collection of Fees. It shall be the duty of the Fire Chief to collect fees pursuant to this Chapter." SECTION 2. SEVERABILITY The City Council of the City of Anaheim hereby declares that should any section, paragraph, sentence or word of this ordinance of the Code, hereby adopted, be declared for any reason to be invalid, it is the intent of the Council that it would have passed all other portions of this ordinance independent of the elimination herefrom of any such portion as may be declared invalid. SECTION 3. SAVINGS CLAUSE Neither the adoption of this ordinance nor the repeal of any other ordinance of this City shall in any manner affect the prosecution for violations of ordinances, which violations were committed prior to the effective date hereof, nor be construed as a waiver of any license or penalty or the penal provisions applicable to any violation thereof. The provisions of this ordinance, insofar as they are substantially the same as ordinance provisions previously adopted by the City relating to the same subject matter, shall be construed as restatements and continuations, and not as new enactments. THE FOREGOING ORDINANCE is approved and adopted by the City Council of the City of Anaheim this 29th -day of ,Tune 1993. raP46no� MAY(5R OF TH I Y O ANAHEIM ATTEST: n w CITY CLERK OF THE CITY OF ANAHEIM LMM:kh 774.1\LMCLEAN\May 11, 1993 STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF ORANGE } ss. CITY OF ANAHEIM ) I, LEONORA N. SOHL, City Clerk of the City of Anaheim, do hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 5381 was introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Anaheim, held on the 22nd day of June, 1993, and that the same was duly passed and adopted at a regular meeting of said City Council held on the 29th day of June, 1993, by the following vote of the members thereof: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Feldhaus, Hunter, Simpson, Daly NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Pickier AND I FURTHER CERTIFY that the Mayor of the City of Anaheim signed said Ordinance No. 5381 on the 30th day of June, 1993. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of Anaheim this 30th day of June, 1993. CITY CLERK OF THE CITY OF ANAHEIM (SEAL) I, LEONORA N. SOHL, City Clerk of the City of Anaheim, do hereby certify that the foregoing is the original of Ordinance No. 5381 and was published once in the Anaheim Bulletin on the 8th day of July, 1993. CITY CLERK OF THE CITY OF ANAHEIM