Olympia Police Win SIAC Alarm Management Award

March 6, 2007
City's police department recognized for supporting ordinance to reduce false alarms

The Security Industry Alarm Coalition (SIAC) announced today that it has presented its "Award of Distinction for Excellence in Alarm Management" to two members from the Olympia (Washington) Police Department.

The recipients were Dick Machlan and Laura Wohl, who were recognized in conjunction with OPD Chief Gary Michel and Commander Steve Nelson. The award recognizes individuals who have been instrumental in supporting and creating policies and programs that reduce the number of false burglar alarm calls made to police.

Ron Haner of Alarm Center Inc., and a representative for SIAC, presented the award to Wohl and Machlan. The two OPD staff members were recognized for their assistance in creating a false burglar alarm ordinance that has reduced false alarm calls by 70 percent in the 20 months after its implementation.

According to a statement from SIAC, the ordinance and efforts were especially appropriate because they fell in-line with SIAC's suggested guidelines for quality alarm ordinances:

SIAC says a well-instituted alarm ordinance includes "annual registration, Enhanced Call Verification (two calls to the alarm customer, if needed, to confirm if a break-in has occurred), adoption of the industry control panel (CP-01) standard for all new installations, a fee for each response to an alarm and suspension of service for alarm sites that have more than four false alarms in a year." The organization often works to support what it considers proper ordinances and to draw citizen criticism and attention to ordinances that don't meet a model of false alarm reduction, but which instead pursue so-called verified response policies.

The award was presented on Feb. 20, 2007.