To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Zach Curren, Fire Chief
Prepared By: Shuree Egloff, Principal Management Analyst
TITLE:
Title
NVUSD False Alarm Write-off Request
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution authorizing the Finance Director to write off False Alarm Fines in the amount of $13,332.00.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The Fire Department currently manages resources committed to responding to excessive false fire alarms and issues fines to entities that violate Napa Municipal Code Chapter 9.65, Regulation of False Fire Alarms.
Currently, the Napa Valley School District (“NVUSD”) have received 17 invoices totaling $13,332.00 for fire false alarms. Unfortunately, the District is placed in a difficult position, as many of these alarms are triggered by students either intentionally or unintentionally, often because of vaping or similar activities. Each time a fire alarm is activated, the Fire Department is required to respond, assess the situation, and determine whether the incident constitutes a false fire alarm fine. Under previous practice, if the alarm was determined not to have been activated by a true fire emergency, NVUSD was fined, regardless of the circumstances that triggered the alarm.
Following discussion and review of the NMC Chapter 9.65, it was determined that, in this situation, the fire alarm systems are functioning exactly as designed and therefore should not be classified as false fire alarms. Chapter 9.65 defines a false fire alarm as “the activation of a fire alarm not caused by heat, smoke, or fire which results in a response.” In these cases, the alarms are being activated by smoke or aerosol particulates, consistent with their intended purpose of detecting potentially hazardous conditions. Due to the incorrect classification of these incidents, we request that the existing fire false alarm fines be written off, as the alarms should not have been deemed false. Additionally, we plan to continue working collaboratively with NVUSD to reduce the response burden caused by these improper fire alarms. With the ongoing goal of reducing unnecessary emergency responses, other types and causes of false fire alarms will continue to be evaluated and fined as applicable under Chapter 9.65.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
The proposed action will reduce General Fund Revenue by $13,332.00.
CEQA:
The Fire Chief has determined that the Recommended Action described in this Staff Report is not subject to CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15060.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Resolution
NOTIFICATION:
None.