Local News in Brief : Countywide : County to Charge $30 for False Burglar Alarms

The Sheriff’s Department won approval Wednesday from the Board of Supervisors to charge $30 each time deputies have to respond to more than two false burglar alarms in a calendar year at the same address.

In urging the board to approve the fees Wednesday, Sheriff’s Capt. Vito Ferlauto said a study showed that 90% of the more than 10,000 alarm calls the department responded to in 1986 were false.

“Many go off because they are improperly installed, improperly set or improperly operating,” Ferlauto said.

Another department spokesman said false alarms cost the department $300,000 in 1986 because officers have to respond to every alarm, even if those at addresses where there is a known problem.

Although the department expects to rake in $122,000 annually with the fees, Lt. Richard J. Olson said its aim is not to make a profit. He said he hopes that “it will get people to fix their alarms and maintain them properly.”

Ferlauto told the board that fees would not apply to false alarms caused by rain or wind.

Olson said a survey of 19 cities in the county found just one that didn’t charge a fee for answering false alarms. Those fees range from $25 to $100, he said.