WASHINGTON – The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Thursday released additional online resources for commercial driver’s license holders, employers, state driver licensing agencies, medical review officers and substance abuse professionals regarding the upcoming implementation of the agency’s CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse in January 2020.
The new clearinghouse resource webpage provides commercial motor vehicle stakeholders with a variety of informative resources about the clearinghouse, including a comprehensive fact sheet, implementation timeline, frequently asked questions, and more.
Additionally, CMV stakeholders can sign-up to receive clearinghouse-related email updates as the implementation progresses.
“As this Congressional mandate is enacted, FMCSA’s goal is to provide as many resources and updates as possible to those who will be using the upcoming Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse,” said FMSCA Administrator Raymond P. Martinez. “As we transition to the use of the clearinghouse, we will ensure drivers, employers, and state licensing agencies are kept up-to-date throughout the implementation process. FMCSA is here to be helpful and to assist all CMV stakeholders who have questions regarding the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse.”
The clearinghouse will be a secure online database that will allow FMCSA, CMV employers, state driver licensing agencies, and law enforcement officials to identify – in real-time – CDL drivers who have violated federal drug and alcohol testing program requirements, and thereby improve safety on our nation’s roads.
The rule on the CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse requires mandatory use of the clearinghouse to report and query information about driver drug and alcohol program violations goes into effect.
Employers must conduct both electronic queries within the Clearinghouse and manual inquiries with previous employers to cover the preceding three years.
For drivers, failure to consent to a required test will result in a driver being prohibited from performing a safety-sensitive function, such as operating a CMV.
For more information on FMCSA’s new Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse resource website, visit https://clearinghouse.fmcsa.dot.gov/
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