Madison smoking ban enforcement

The Wisconsin State Journal has a story today about a Madison bar owner receiving a fine for people smoking in his bar. Dave Wiganowsky thinks he might be targeted for fines because he has been an outspoken opponent of the ban. I have no idea if this is true but the issues he raises about enforcing the ban are important.

This week I made one of my rare trips to a Madison bar and saw the problem Wiganowsky brings up. While I was at the bar, one of the other customers started smoking. The bartender immediately asked him to put it out. The smoker ignored him. I heard the bartender ask the smoker to put out the cigarette at least three times and he was ignored every time.

Should the bar be fined for this? Just how far does the city expect bartenders to go in order to enforce this? Should it even be the responsibility of the bartenders to enforce this? What if it starts getting physical when an intoxicated patron takes on the bartender?

Wiganowsky faces $822 in fines for a case just like this. As Wiganowsky describes it:

"My employee did exactly what he was supposed to do," Wiganowsky said. But he said it's a fine line at how far to push someone who is larger than his bartender and who has had a few drinks, as was the case in one of the instances.

"(The bartender) tried to tell the guy, sorry, we can't allow smoking in here, but he wouldn't put out his cigarette. The guy said, 'What are you going to do about it?' " Wiganowsky said. "The gentleman had a drink, then he left."

It doesn't seem fair to fine a bar owner for a bar patron's act or to expect a bartender to physically throw smokers out of bars that won't listen to them.

I am still torn on this issue. I really enjoy the smoke free bars but I know that my few trips to the bar are not going to keep any bar in business.

So let's hear it folks. Is it right for the city of Madison to fine bar owners for patrons that don't put out cigarettes when asked and should the city expect the bartenders to be the enforcer of this ordinance?

Also note - Go here to see that Milwaukee is about to go through the same fight on a smoking ban. The answer to the problems with the smoking ban is probably to make it statewide.