The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse has unquestionably achieved much of its intended purpose.
The burden of chasing down former employers of drivers in an effort to obtain drug and alcohol testing results has changed drastically. The required information is now just a query away in the Clearinghouse.
No more playing the system
One key benefit is that drivers who failed drug or alcohol tests are no longer able to apply to carrier after carrier in an attempt to find one that won’t perform background checks before making a hire.
Clearinghouse regulations specify that those drivers shouldn’t be eligible to perform safety-sensitive functions until they undergo a return to duty (RTD) program administered by a substance abuse professional (SAP) — but without a sound reporting system, states that issued CDLs to those drivers remained unaware.
All of that began to change in January 2017, the effective date of rule that established the Clearinghouse. Carriers are now required to report testing results to a central entity and query the same entity to review the records of prospective drivers.
Of course, it took a few years for the Clearinghouse database to build, but carriers could now determine if a driver was in a prohibited status with a few mouse clicks.
Phase II now in effect
A second final ruling, known as “Clearinghouse II,” took effect on November 18, 2024.
Under the provisions of the ruling, state driver’s licensing agencies (SDLAs) are now required to downgrade the licenses of any driver in a “prohibited” status until they’ve completed an RTD program as recorded in the Clearinghouse.
Before Phase II went into effect, state agencies had the ability to submit queries; however, the individual computer systems in each state weren’t always able to communicate with the Clearinghouse to receive status changes in a timely manner.
Now, all that’s changed.
Oral fluid testing is close
Another Final Ruling, effective December 5, 2024, clarifies training requirements for Oral Fluid Testing collectors. The ruling may seem irrelevant, given the long wait for the DOT to certify laboratories to test specimens, but it’s an important clarification. The original ruling specified that those who train the collectors have at least a year of experience performing collections, but until the program actually gets underway, no one will have ANY experience.
The laboratory issue may be sorted soon as well. “We feel that testing should be able to begin by the end of the 1st quarter in 2025 and should definitely be going by the 2nd quarter,” said Jo McGuire, executive director of the National Drug & Alcohol Screening Association. “All of the labs are in validity testing with the approved device now.”
McGuire remarked that it’s important for carriers to be ready when the testing becomes official. “We are continuing to train trainers and are ready to train collectors as of December 6. Devices are now available to order from Abbott.” Abbott Toxicology will be a supplier of testing supplies and a provider of laboratory services.
The delay in certification, it appears, occurred because labs didn’t want to invest in supplies and process until testing cut-off levels were established in a Final Rule. Once certain that the levels had not changed from the original proposed rule, progress was made quickly.
Benefits of oral fluid testing
Besides offering another option for testing, Oral Fluid collection eliminates some of the issues around urine testing. Since the need for observed tests is gone, questions of gender and who is qualified to observe are mute. Oral fluid collection does away with shy bladder incidents as well as dilution or alteration of specimens.
Collection facility regulations are reduced as well, since the need for a private bathroom is eliminated, as are requirements to restrict access to water.
Impact on carrier policy
During the 2024 Accelerate! Conference and Expo hosted by the Women In Trucking Association, a distinguished panel of drug and alcohol policy experts moderated by McGuire discussed the need for each carrier to have a strong policy that is clearly communicated. That policy should include the carrier’s right to use Oral Fluid testing at its discretion.
“It needs to be in the policy for pre-employment,” said Mia Hicks, manager of risk and compliance at DISA Global Solutions. “We’re going to do this and if it escalates, we’re going to do that.”
Don’t wait to update policies
Even with constantly shifting processes, motor carrier policies need to be clear and must be shared with everyone concerned prior to actual testing. Prospective drivers should be informed that they will be subject to any form of testing for drugs and alcohol that the carrier deems appropriate, within the laws and regulations in effect at the time of testing.
Still waiting for hair follicle testing
A long-awaited ruling about another form of testing still hasn’t happened. The use of Hair Follicle Testing for DOT supervised employees, included in the FAST Act that became effective in December 2015, has still not been approved for use. In fact, the Spring 2024 Unified Agenda published by the Department of Health and Human Services called for a proposed rulemaking by October 2024 to include hair testing in Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs. It didn’t happen.
“I recently heard a great quote that summarizes this slow walk in a nutshell,” said David Heller, senior vice president of safety and government affairs for the Truckload Carriers Association. “Innovators will beat regulators every time, which is evidenced by the success stories of motor carriers across the country that have adopted hair follicle testing for their own programs.”
While hair follicle testing results are not currently shared in the Clearinghouse, some carriers have been using the technology as a supplement to the USDOT’s testing regimen. Hair follicle testing has proven superior to urine testing for identifying drug use much farther in the past, and it provides many of the benefits of oral fluid testing, such as gender issues and elimination of the need for bathrooms.
“TCA has not been quiet on this issue,” Heller said. “This topic has been discussed with both regulators and legislators in DC, and it will continue to be brought up until our industry has guidelines that will allow for this alternative measure.”
Cliff Abbott is an experienced commercial vehicle driver and owner-operator who still holds a CDL in his home state of Alabama. In nearly 40 years in trucking, he’s been an instructor and trainer and has managed safety and recruiting operations for several carriers. Having never lost his love of the road, Cliff has written a book and hundreds of songs and has been writing for The Trucker for more than a decade.
