LA CROSSE (AP) – An ordinance prohibiting bartenders here from drinking on the job went into effect over the weekend to help change a binge-drinking culture that police say has led to several drowning deaths.
The ordinance allows bartenders to drink on a break, but their blood-alcohol level cannot exceed 0.08 percent, the legal limit for driving under the influence of alcohol. The fine for bartenders and tavern owners for breaking the rule is $75.
The city has moved to clamp down on excessive drinking after University of Wisconsin-La Crosse student Jared Dion drowned in the Mississippi River in 2004. He was the seventh college student to drown in La Crosse area rivers since 1997. Police have said the drownings were alcohol-related.