The Duluth city council has approved a false alarm fine for residents and businesses if police are dispatched to three or more false calls.
Duluth authorities will now be able to give out $100 fines after a police are dispatched to a third false alarm. Residents and business will also be fined an additional $100 for each false alarm following the initial fine.
Duluth, which has a population of just under 85,000 residents, resides next to Lake Superior’s bay.
The council also implemented an amendment that allotted alarm owners 20 minutes to respond to their false alarm before police are dispatched.
Last year Duluth Police responded to nearly 2,400 residential and business alarms. Only 11 of those were legitimate, according to Northland’s NewsCenter. The Duluth police department reported in excess of $171,000 in false alarm costs in 2008.
