Saint Paul Legislative Code tit. XXIX, ch. 329 — Alarm Systems for Emergency Calls | Saint Paul Legislative Code (Supp. No. 133, Update 1: codified through Ordinance No. 26-26, adopted May 13, 2026) — City of St. Paul

Saint Paul Legislative Code § 329.01 Alarm system definitions.

Sec. 329.01. - Alarm system definitions. (A) Definitions: For the purposes of this section, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings set forth in this subsection except where the context clearly indicates that a different meaning is intended: (1) Alarm company means the business of any individual, partnership, corporation, or other entity involving the selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, repairing, altering, replacing, moving, monitoring, or installing any alarm system at an alarm site located within the city or causing to be sold, leased, maintained, serviced, repaired, altered, replaced, moved, or installed any alarm system in or on any building, structure, facility, or other alarm site located within the city. (2) Alarm permit means a permit issued by the department of safety and inspections to any owner or other person in control of a building structure, property, or any part thereof, located within the city, who has leased, purchased or otherwise possesses an alarm system for use on any premises. (3) Alarm system means any assembly of equipment devices, including but not limited to systems interconnected with a radio frequency method such as cellular or private radio signal, arranged to emit or transmit a remote or local audible, visual or electronic signal, indicating an alarm condition to which the police or fire-fighting personnel are intended to respond, including but not limited to, burglary, hold-up, panic, and fire alarm systems. (4) Alarm system user means a person, employee, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, or other entity, which uses or is in control of an alarm system at an alarm site, regardless of whether the user owns or leases the alarm system. (5) Annunciator means the instrumentality in or on the premises of an alarm system through which audible, visual and/or electric signals communicate to any person. (6) Automatic dialing device means a device which utilizes the public primary telephone trunk lines or other dedicated lines to select a predetermined or assigned telephone number and which transmits, by a prerecorded voice message or code signal, to the Saint Paul Police Department, a message that an incident of the kind noted in the definition of "alarm system" has occurred. (7) Designated contact person means a person designated by the alarm system user as contact person for the purpose of alarm-related matters and who can provide for twenty-four-hours-a-day availability and has the ability to control the alarm system. (8) False alarm means the activitation of an alarm system which is intended to summon a police response by the alarm system user, owner, designated contact person or person in control of the premises on which the alarm system is placed, through intentional misuse; mechanical failure or malfunction; improper installation, maintenance or supervision; or negligence. The term does not include alarms caused by force majeure, or other conditions which are clearly beyond the control of the alarm user. Alarm systems must be equipped with a working battery backup system that will power the system in the event of a power outage. A battery back up usually provides approximately two (2) hours of back up time. Alarms caused by a power outage lasting long enough to exhaust the battery back up will be reviewed on a case by case basis. (9) License inspector means an inspector of the department of safety and inspections. (C.F. No. 04-1054, § 1, 11-24-04; C.F. No. 07-149, § 84, 3-28-07)

Saint Paul Legislative Code § 329.02 Use of alarm systems.

Sec. 329.02. - Use of alarm systems. (A) Alarm system user's permit: (1) Permit required; term. Upon the effective date of this section, every alarm system user shall obtain, for each alarm system, approval from the license inspector for an alarm system user permit. A permit when issued shall be valid for one (1) year and must be renewed by the alarm system user each year thereafter. If a property alarm system user changes, the new property alarm system user is required to obtain a new permit for their use of the property's alarm system. (2) Fees; exemption. Annual fee: The annual fee required shall be found in Chapter 310 of the St. Paul Legislative Code. Additional fees may be required under the provisions of subsection (B)(2) below. Additional fee for late application: A ten dollar ($10.00) charge will be added to the fees provided herein for any alarm system user who fails to obtain an alarm system user permit within thirty (30) days after the effective date of this section, or who is more than thirty (30) days delinquent in renewing an alarm system user permit, or who is a new alarm system user and is more than thirty (30) days delinquent in obtaining a new permit. An alarm system user which is a political sub-division of the federal or state government, including the city, shall be subject to all the provisions of this section but shall be exempted from the annual permit fee requirements hereunder. (3) Application: requirements. Any person, employee, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, or other entity applying for an alarm system user permit shall supply to the license inspector, on a form to be provided, the following information: (a) The names and addresses of the alarm users, alarm owners (if different than the alarm user) and the alarm company; (b) The place where the alarm system will be installed and maintained; (c) The type and brand name of the alarm system being installed and/or used; (d) The name, address, phone number and business name of the installer of the alarm system, if the permit applicant is the party who is responsible for having the alarm system installed; otherwise, whatever information the applicant has available to provide; (e) The name, address and phone number of the company monitoring the alarm system; (f) A list of the name/s/, address/es/ and telephone number/s/ of person/s/ designated by the alarm users as the contact person/s/ for the purposes of alarm-related matters and who can provide twenty-four-hours-a-day availability and has the ability to control the alarm; and (g) A declaration that the alarm system does not utilize an automatic dialing device. (4) Issuance of permit. Upon approval, by the director of the department of safety and inspections or the director designee, of an initial or renewal application and payment of the required fees, the department of safety and inspections shall issue a permit and send it to the applicant by United States mail. (5) Denial of permit. In the event the license inspector determines the application for grant, issuance or renewal does not meet all the requirements of law, the license inspector shall recommend denial and follow the procedures set forth in section 310.05. (6) Permit to be displayed. The permit shall be physically displayed upon the premises where the alarm system is used, shall be readily visible from the exterior thereof, and shall be available for inspection by the license inspector or by any Saint Paul police officer. (B) Public nuisance; false alarms; operating without a permit; (1) Public nuisance. It shall be a public nuisance for any person to maintain or have actual physical control over any alarm system that: (a) Emits, by an annunciator, an audible or visual alarm system signal more than twenty (20) minutes of continuous duration; (b) Emits, through the reactivation of annunciator over an alarm system, an audible or visual signal which occurs more than twice in a one-hour period; or (c) Signals a false alarm. (2) False alarms; fee schedule. Any person found to be in violation of this subsection shall be issued a warning for the first violation thereof. A fee shall be paid by the alarm system user to the City for each false alarm in excess of one (1) per calendar year. The fee shall be seventy five dollars ($75.00) for the second false alarm, one hundred dollars ($100.00) for the third, two hundred dollars ($200.00) for the fourth, three hundred dollars ($300.00) for the fifth, four hundred dollars ($400.00) for the sixth, and five hundred dollars ($500.00) for the seventh. The fee for each false alarm thereafter shall be five hundred dollars ($500.00). (3) Use of alarm system without a permit. When the police respond to an alarm at a location and it is determined there is no alarm permit for that location, the alarm system user may be issued a citation by the Saint Paul Police Department for violation of use of an alarm system without a permit. Anyone using an alarm system without a permit must follow section 329.02 (A) to acquire a permit. Permit holders who are more than thirty (30) days delinquent in renewing their permit will be considered to be using without a permit. (C.F. No. 1776, § 1, 9-20-04; C.F. No. 07-149, § 85, 3-28-07; C.F. No. 08-214, § 1, 3-26-08; Ord 17-24, § 1, 8-2-17)