In our latest installment of Ask the Expert, brought to you by the team of industry experts at EHS Hero®, we look at a recent question from a subscriber asking about reporting drug information to the CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. See what the experts had to say.
Q: We are a municipality. Are we exempt from reporting the following drug and alcohol information to the CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse?
- A verified positive, adulterated, or substituted drug test result;
- An alcohol confirmation test with a concentration of 0.04 or higher;
- A refusal to submit to any test required by Subpart C of Part 382;
- An employer’s report of actual knowledge, as defined at §382.107;
- On duty alcohol use pursuant to §382.205;
- Pre-duty alcohol use pursuant to §382.207;
- Alcohol use following an accident pursuant to §382.209;
- Controlled substance use pursuant to §382.213;
- A substance abuse professional (SAP as defined in §40.3) report of the successful completion of the return-to-duty process;
- A negative return-to-duty test;
- An employer’s report of completion of follow-up testing.
The requirements for reporting to the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse are applicable only to employers that employ persons who operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) on public roads in any state and are subject to the commercial driver’s license (CDL) requirements at 49 CFR Part 383. This includes, but is not limited to, interstate and intrastate motor carriers (including passenger carriers), school bus drivers, construction equipment operators, limousine drivers, municipal vehicle drivers, and federal and other organizations that employ drivers subject to FMCSA drug and alcohol testing regulations. Therefore, as a municipality, if you employ drivers required to possess a CDL who operate CMVs in the course of their job duties, you must report the required information listed in 49 CFR 382.705(b) to the Clearinghouse.
A commercial motor vehicle is defined as a motor vehicle or combination of motor vehicles used in commerce to transport passengers or property if the vehicle:
- Has a gross combination weight rating of 11,794 or more kilograms (26,001 or more pounds) inclusive of a towed unit with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds); or
- Has a gross vehicle weight rating of 11,794 or more kilograms (26,001 or more pounds); or
- Is designed to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver; or
- Is of any size and is used in the transportation of materials found to be hazardous for the purposes of the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act and which require the motor vehicle to be placarded under the Hazardous Materials Regulations at 49 CFR Part 172, Subpart F.