![\"David](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/david_glasheen_307x409.jpg\")
David Glasheen, City Councilman for District 3<\/p>\nA public outcry stopped enforcement of an updated Lubbock alarm ordinance on October 17 with the issue coming back to the City Council on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
David Glasheen, councilman for District 3, plans to repeal the update \u2013 eliminating the permit fee for an alarm system.<\/p>\n
David Glasheen, City Councilman for District 3<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone is already paying taxes for public safety. It\u2019s not any different if you call 911 or if a dispatch service calls 911 on your behalf,\u201d Glasheen said.<\/p>\n
The problem presented to the Council in August was false alarms. Last year there were 9,829 false alarms, according to statistics police provided to LubbockLights.com for our previous coverage<\/a>. Police send two officers to each alarm and typically the response time is roughly six minutes for each officer.<\/p>\n Jennifer Wilson, councilwoman for District 5, said, \u201cWhat I have a problem with is that permit fee.\u201d<\/p>\n The up-front fee hits everyone, she said, even those who have never had a false alarm.<\/p>\n \u201cI do think that is potentially unfair to people that are maintaining their alarm systems appropriately,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n The dollar figure on the application fee did not change as part of the update. It had been $50 for most homeowners and $25 for those over the age of 65. That\u2019s still the application fee. But the rules on when to pay did change.<\/p>\n Old vs. new<\/p>\n The previous ordinance said \u201c\u2026 The chief of police may set a nonrefundable fee \u2026\u201d for an alarm permit.<\/p>\n The new ordinance uses the words \u201cshall pay.\u201d<\/p>\n The previous ordinance also said, \u201cNo person who is in control of an alarm site shall be required to obtain a permit for an alarm system unless the police department responds to at least three (3) false burglary alarm notifications or one false robbery alarm notification at such alarm site within any calendar year.\u201d<\/p>\n The new ordinance says \u201cno person\u201d shall operate an alarm system without a permit.<\/p>\n What happened<\/p>\n \u201cI really think a lot of us voted on something we weren\u2019t very clear on,\u201d Wilson said, adding that\u2019s \u201cno excuse.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUltimately, that\u2019s Council\u2019s responsibility \u2026 something got out that I don\u2019t think we were quite up to date on what it was asking of us,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n Glasheen said, \u201cThe ordinance came up during the budget cycle. It really didn\u2019t get the attention or study that it deserves from Council, and I include myself in that as part of a self-critique.\u201d<\/p>\n In late August Seth Herman, Lubbock police chief, told the Council, \u201cWe do request \u2026 that this become effective October 1 to be in line with the fiscal year, if possible.\u201d<\/p>\n A second vote in September approved it, including the October 1 start date.<\/p>\n Glasheen said, \u201cMy intention on Tuesday is to cleanly repeal the ordinance as it was passed. The Council then will have enough time to go back and reconsider what, if anything, is appropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n He thinks maybe the Council will be ready to finish this issue by the end of the year.<\/p>\n The police department declined to comment until after the Council has a chance to reexamine the issue. LubbockLights.com was invited to check back next week.<\/p>\n Police Department press release on October 14<\/p>\n LPD Reminds Public of Change in False Alarm Ordinance<\/p>\n (LUBBOCK, TX) \u2013 In an effort to combat misinformation, the Lubbock Police Department is reaching out to the public to remind citizens of the recent change to the City of Lubbock\u2019s False Alarm Ordinance.<\/p>\n The change, which went into effect on October 1st, 2025, after approval by the Lubbock City Council, is documented on the department\u2019s website at www.lubbockpolice.com under \u2018Crime & Safety\u2019 and \u2018False Alarm Information\u2019. Once there, citizens will find detailed instructions about the permitting process. The update to the ordinance requires all alarm systems to have a valid permit in place.<\/p>\n As part of this update, alarm holders will receive a letter from the LPD\u2019s Records department, which notifies the owner of a permit fee associated with their alarm. The letter goes on to document with detailed instruction how the owner can go about making a payment for the permit, as well as who to contact should they have any questions.<\/p>\n The update to the ordinance was implemented in order to better allocate LPD department resources, with a goal of cutting down on false alarm responses and allowing officers to respond to true emergencies.<\/p>\n The timeline so far:<\/p>\n August 26 \u2013 A proposed update to Lubbock\u2019s alarm ordinance was introduced for a first vote (and it passed) with a goal to reduce false alarms.<\/p>\n September 9 \u2013 Second vote and approval.<\/p>\n October 1 \u2013 The updated ordinance took effect with a three false-alarms as the threshold for a fee \u2013 reduced from five false alarms per year. Monitoring companies were also required to make two attempts to contact the owner before calling police. Alarms must shut off after 15 minutes; owners have 15 days to fix malfunctioning systems.<\/p>\n October 13-14 \u2013 Rollout and public notification letters with notice of a $50 fee went out to citizens saying, \u201cNo person shall operate an alarm system unless a valid permit has been issued by the City of Lubbock.\u201d<\/p>\n October 15-17 \u2013 Public backlash began. Councilwoman Jennifer Wilson posted to Facebook she wanted the ordinance reconsidered.<\/p>\n October 17 \u2013 The city issued a news release 17 days into the updated ordinance, saying it was suspending all permitting and enforcement \u201cto allow for further Council consideration.\u201d No permits or fines have been issued since then.<\/p>\n![\"Jennifer](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/jennifer_wilson_278x371.jpg\")
Jennifer Wilson, City Councilwoman for District 5<\/p>\n
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