FMCSA establishes clearinghouse for CDL drug, alcohol testing

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration today announced a final rule establishing a national database for the drug and alcohol testing records of commercial truck and bus drivers.

   The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will establish a national clearinghouse for the drug and alcohol testing of commercial truck and bus drivers, the administration said in a statement.
   Under a final rule announced today, FMCSA will build a national database to serve as a central repository of records of violations of the administration’s drug and alcohol testing of commercial drivers license holders. The national drug and alcohol clearinghouse final rule goes into effect Jan. 4, 2017, and motor carriers will be required to be compliant by January 2020.
   The establishment of a national drug and alcohol clearinghouse was mandated by Congress in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21).
   Once the clearinghouse is up and running, carrier employers will be required to query the system at least once a year for information on current or prospective employees with unresolved violations of the federal drug and alcohol testing regulations that would prohibit them from operating a commercial motor vehicle, FMCSA said.
   Federal safety regulations require employers to conduct pre-employment drug testing and random drug and alcohol testing.
   The final rule also requires employers and medical review officers to report drug and alcohol testing program violations and record them in the database. Information that must be reported includes drivers that test positive for drugs or alcohol, refuse drug and alcohol testing, or undergo the return-to-duty drug and alcohol rehabilitation process.
   Under the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. § 552a), a driver must grant consent before an employer can request access to that driver’s clearinghouse record and before FMCSA can release the driver’s clearinghouse record to an employer. After registering with the clearinghouse, a driver can review his or her information at no cost.
   FMCSA estimates the drug and alcohol clearinghouse final rule will bring annual net benefits of $42 million thanks to a reduction in crashes resulting from annual and pre-employment queries by regulated motor carriers.
   “An overwhelming majority of the nation’s freight travels by truck, and millions of passengers reach their destinations by bus, so creating a central, comprehensive, and searchable database of commercial motor vehicle drivers who violate federal drug and alcohol testing requirements has been a departmental priority,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said of the final rule. “This system will be a new technological tool that will make our roads safer.”
   “This is a major safety win for the general public and the entire commercial motor vehicle industry,” added FMCSA Administrator Scott Darling. “The clearinghouse will allow carriers across the country to identify current and prospective drivers who have tested positive for drugs or alcohol, and employ those who drive drug- and alcohol-free. Drivers who test positive for drugs or alcohol will no longer be able to conceal those test results from employers and continue to drive while posing a safety risk to the driving public.”