At least 16 local governments have toughened or have decided to toughen their rules on punishing employees for drunken driving following a fatal car accident allegedly caused by an employee of the city of Fukuoka last month.
Also, 33 local governments are reviewing their rules to see if they need toughening, while five prefectural boards of education have decided to toughen their own rules.
Many officials in charge of personnel affairs at the local governments that have toughened their rules said they have faced more public scrutiny since the Aug. 25 accident in which the three children were killed in Fukuoka.
Miyagi Prefecture and the city of Maebashi said they had been considering toughening their rules before the Fukuoka accident.
Yamanashi, Kyoto, Osaka and Yamaguchi prefectures and the cities of Kyoto, Fukuoka and Nagasaki said they have changed the rules to basically fire any employee found to have driven under the influence of alcohol regardless of whether there was an accident.