The Vista City Council unanimously appoved a proposal to require state-certified training for employees who sell or serve alcohol. “We partnered with the City of Vista back in 2005 to coordinate State-certified training classes,” stated Erica Leary, Program Manager for NCPC. Despite invitations and visits from Sheriff’s Deputies, only a third of business attended, and nearly half sent only one employee. Yet, once they were there, they found the training very valuable:
• 99% would recommend this training to others
• 63% had NOT attended training previously, and
• 90% responded they were VERY LIKELY (60%) or LIKELY (30%) to change the way they did their job.
Currently five other cities in the county have some kind of training requirement, including Poway, National City, Solana Beach, Encinitas and San Marcos. The goal of such ordinances is to reduce alcohol-related problems by preventing alcohol sales to minors and sales to intoxicated patrons. According to ‘Place of Last Drink’ surveys collected at Driving Under the Influence Programs (DUIP) in San Diego County, nearly half of respondents report coming from a licensed bar or restaurant prior to their DUI arrest.