Alarm Ordinance

City of Huntsville Alarm Ordinance

The purpose of the Huntsville Ordinance is to (a) aid in the protection of the public; both residential and commercial in the obtaining, using, and maintaining of various systems and/or equipment intended for offering security and protection of life, safety, and property, i.e., fire, burglary, access, surveillance, emergency, robbery, environmental, locking, securing, monitoring, and others, (b) to encourage, guide as well as, to establish standards and policies for those who are the system contract holders or those performing the marketing, selling, leasing, placing, servicing, repairing, moving, programming, and/or monitoring of the systems or equipment, (c) to reduce the burden and maintain the reduction of false responses, (d) maintain a continuing education program to both the system users and the providers of the systems, services, etc. on all phases of proper procedures involved.

(a) The Ordinance governs all systems equipment and related services intended to offer security and / or protection both monitored or local, hard wire or wireless, mechanical or electrical as described in section #1 of the Ordinance that is placed or used at any site of location within the city limits of the City of Huntsville, (b) requiring the licensing and registering of all businesses and their personnel as described in Section #1 of the Ordinance, (c) requiring the permitting and/or registering of all systems or equipment as described in Section #1 of the Ordinance except for standard locks on doors, gates, or windows, as well as, access control, surveillance or other systems that are not interlocking as part of a security system, is not a security system within itself or a system not intended to offer safety or protection for life, property or an area, or a system on a vehicle, airplane, or boat except where such is in its home morring site or itself is an established site, or a personal system unless it communicates through the primary system, nor an environmental system designed to alert only the inhabitants of the premises, owners or service personnel of an environmental or other problem and has no alerting devices that can be heard or seen from the exterior of the premises or would require or need the response of the police, fire, or emergency personnel.

PROCEDURES TO BE FOLLOWED

MONITORING COMPANIES
(Fire, Police, Emergency, Medical)
All monitoring companies are to register annually. There is no fee for the registering of monitoring companies. However, not registering can create a "non-registration fee" and/or a fee for each dispatch request by a non-registered monitoring company. Forms are available on this web page.

SYSTEM COMPANIES
System companies that market/sell, install, place, lease, service, repair, move, convert or take-over systems or perform locking services as discussed in the above "Statement of Purpose:, etc. are to register at the Electronic Security Management Unit of the Department of Public Safety, 815 Wheeler Ave., Room 245, Huntsville, AL 35801. There is an annual fee of $35.00.

Note: If a system company has no presence in the State of Alabama and/or the City of Huntsville and is classified only as a "contact holder" using local licensed / registered subcontractors, the Electronic Security Unit may offer special arrangements of just requiring some registering and not all the requirements of the AESBL.

It is important to note that the security company is required to perform the posting of the "permit" at the system site, as well as, complete the registration procedures and all forms; then file same with the Department of Public Safety. This must be performed at the time of the installation, conversion or takeover. (The system is not considered legal and/or official until permit is posted and forms on file.)

All system companies must conform to the requirements of the AESBL, 7956 Vaughn Rd. #392, Montgomery, AL 36116, telephone 334-264-9388. Forms, information, etc. also available at the Department of Public Safety, Room 245.

Monitoring companies requesting Police Dispatch must check with AESBL regarding requirements and licensing.

ETHICS COMES FROM WITHIN A PERSON OR COMPANY MANAGEMENT

Just a reminder... An alarm system does two things: only two...(1) Its is a deterrent by its existence at the site. (2) It is (most important) an instant alerter. This instant alerting is targeted at the intruder. This instant on the spot right now alerting created by the outside sirens and / or strobe lights is hollering at the intruder SCAT. This is true honest to goodness protection and it is right now on the spot instant protection. This is true protection during that "security time lapse" before the Police can arrive.

Many companies accept this awesome responsibility of marketing, installing effective honest to goodness protection, however, there are companies that the system or equipment is primarily a vehicle for obtaining a monitoring contract.

Again, we request you read "The Alarm Salesperson's Creed".

In Huntsville, we have an ongoing education program targeted at the public relating to the importance of the ethics of the security industry. Its is clearly stated that there are those companies that are most ethical; that these companies sell, install systems that offer true honest to goodness protection. The systems have properly placed outside alerting sirens, strobe lights, etc., as an intricate part of their system. We also advise the public that our Department strongly recommends the use of outside alerting with sirens and/or strobe lights and that we continually emphasize to the security industry that we desire and expect the industry to install the outside alerting with sirens and/or strobe lights as an intricate part of all their systems.