Alarm User Permits

Important Information About Applying for An Alarm Permit

Please review the following information prior to applying for a permit.

The Flagstaff City Council adopted Alarm Ordinance, Number 1552, authorizing the addition of title 6, chapter 8, relating to and regulating alarms on March 1, 1988. There are some items that you need to be aware of as highlighted below. Alarm definitions: "Alarm" or "Alarm System" means any device designed or used for the purpose of alerting and summoning police services or equipment to the scene of a burglary, robbery, or other serious criminal act to which they are needed or expected to respond.

1. Every alarm user shall obtain an alarm user's permit from the Flagstaff Police Department for each location an alarm system is installed in. A permit would be granted upon receipt of a completed application and a paid receipt from the City of Flagstaff for the ten dollar ($10) fee for each permit. Permits are not transferable from one user to another or from one address to another.
2. If the residential alarm user is handicapped (having a permanent physical impairment, defect, or disability) or is over the age of 65 and is the primary resident of the residence, a user's permit may be obtained from the Coordinator's office without the payment of a fee.
3. An alarm user which is a governmental unit shall be subject to this article and shall be required to obtain a permit, but a permit shall be issued without payment of the fee.
4. A permit issued by the City shall be physically on the premises using the alarm and shall be available for inspection by the Alarm Coordinator.
5. The alarm user or permittee is required to notify the Alarm Coordinator of any changes in the information contained in the application or permit, and if the alarm is no longer being used, within ten days after the effective date of such change. All information contained in the application is confidential.
6. Audible alarms shall not emit sound longer than fifteen (15) minutes for residential alarms and thirty (30) minutes for commercial alarms.
7. When three or more false alarms occur by an alarm within a 12 month period, the user will submit a False Alarm Prevention Report, on a form provided by the City, to the Coordinator outlining the action taken by the user to prevent further false alarms. The False Alarm Prevention Report shall be returned to the Coordinator within thirty (30) days and will outline the actions taken to discover and eliminate the cause of the false alarms and any violations of this Ordinance.
8. Any alarm or alarm system deemed or declared a nuisance (3 or more false alarms within a 12 month period) shall not require police personnel or equipment to respond to the alarm's location unless notified by means other than that resulting from the alarm system that criminal activity or another emergency actually exists.
9. If neither the alarm user nor a listed responsible party or their alarm company can be contacted, refuses to respond, or does not respond as provided above, the user shall pay a one-hundred ($100) dollar fee.
10. The sixth (6th) and any subsequent false alarms set off by an alarm in a 12 month period shall be considered excessive false alarms and subject to a minimal penalty fee(s) as follows:
    1. Number of False Alarms Amount of Fine
       1. 0 to 5: No Fine
       2. 6: $25
       3. 7: $50
       4. 8 or more: $100