AUBURN – A plan to register alarms is cutting down on false alarms, according to police Chief Phil Crowell.

Police had to respond to 35 fewer false alarms in August and September compared to the same months in 2007, Crowell said.

“For the most part, it’s a responsibility issue,” Crowell said. “It’s a way for us to get a name of the person responsible for each alarm. It helps us contact the right person if we need them, but it also encourages them to be more responsible about managing their system.”

Crowell said the city began charging penalties about five years ago to addresses with multiple false alarm reports. That didn’t work, and the councilors approved the new permit system last fall. Crowell said the new policy began running in August.

People and businesses with burglar alarms are required give the city the names and number of two people responsible for the alarms. The permit costs $30 for the first year and $5 each year after that.

Under current rules, there is no charge for two false alarms each year. The third and fourth false alarms carry a fee of $30 and the fifth and the sixth a fee of $50. The city charges a $100 fee per alarm if there are seven or more false reports.

Police responded to 914 false alarms in 2007, a cost of $28,791 in wages and 1,371 hours in staff time.

“If we’re waiting for an owner to show up and turn the alarm off, we’re not doing enforcement somewhere else. We’re less effective,” he said.

Crowell said the department has tried to rely on alarm company records to find those responsible for alarms, but discovered they frequently were out of date. Many alarms in the city are not monitored by alarm companies.

Councilor Mike Farrell said the fee is a hardship, especially for people who don’t accidentally set off alarms.

“I’d rather see something along the lines of requiring people to register their systems if there’s two false alarms,” he said.