Home and businessowners in Suffolk County are not happy about a new fine that will see them facing $750 penalty after two false alarms. Greg Cergol reports.
Residents of Suffolk County with home security systems will have to register them with the police department in an effort to stop officers from responding to false alarms.
Registration for the program is $50 for individual residences and $100 for businesses, authorities said. Under the program, residents could be fined up to $750 after two subsequent false alarms.
"We're not looking to penalize people," said Suffolk County Police Chief Stuart Cameron. "We want to reduce false alarms."
Cameron said he hopes that the department can reduce false alarm calls by 70 percent in the first year. It's not clear how much money the program will generate for the county.
In 2015, Suffolk County officers responded to about 97,000 false alarms, costing more than $2.1 million, police said. A total of 32,000 patrol hours were used responding to the false alarms, authorities said.
Patchogue store owner Marc Siegel said he didn't like the plan.
"It's a money maker," Siegel said. "It's not right."
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Long Island Alarm Association chief Mike Mulcahy echoed Siegel's sentiment, saying that permits should be eliminated and the program should only target repeat offenders.
"It shouldn't be punitive to people who just want to have an alarm to feel safe," Mulcahy said.
Residents can register their alarms online at www.suffolkpd.org or in person at police headquarters.
