AMHERST
Amherst increases fines for false fire alarms
Amherst property owners who raise too many false fire alarms could be fined up to $1,000 for each offense under a new law adopted by the Town Board.
Currently, homeowners and other building owners receive a warning the first time they set off a false or “avoidable” alarm that triggers a fire department response. They are fined $50 the second time and $100 each subsequent time.
On Monday, the board unanimously approved a law that would still make the first offense free, but would charge $100 for a second offense, $250 for a third, $500 for a fourth and $1,000 for each subsequent offense.
The newly adopted law could have hefty financial implications for organizations that operate student dorms, apartments, schools and shopping centers, where false alarms are a more frequent occurrence.
The new law was requested by the Amherst Fire Chiefs Association because of what association leaders described as a growing problem and waste of emergency resources.
Association President BrandonK. Houck previously stated in a letter that many false alarms occur because of faulty equipment, malicious intent and failure to notify fire departments when building owners are working on their alarm systems.
Building Commissioner Tom Ketchum said he is worried the new fines might be so punitive that some people might choose to switch off their fire alarm systems or delay contacting the fire department, creating an unsafe situation.
“I think there is a potential downside,” he said.
Council Member Guy Marlette, one of the resolution sponsors, pointed to data showing the vast majority of repeat false alarms don’t come from single-family homes, but from multifamily and commercial properties.
He asked if the law could be changed so that fines for residential properties would be lower than those for commercial properties.
But Town Attorney E. Thomas Jones said he isn’t sure it is legal to change the law so that it discriminates against only certain types property owners.
The adopted law does state that property owners shall not be penalized if their alarms are activated by “violent conditions of nature or similar causes beyond the control of the user” or in cases where the activator reasonably believes an emergency situation exists.
