About Us

Drug and Alcohol Testing for Human
Services Transportation Providers

As of January 1, 1996, many of the people who drive buses and
vans for Head Start programs, senior centers, local
governments and other human services agencies must
participate in federally mandated drug and alcohol testing
programs. The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) drug
and alcohol testing rules apply to public transit providers and all
other employers whose drivers hold Commercial Drivers
Licenses (CDLs).

Background

The DOT began mandating drug testing in 1988. Subsequent
legislation, particularly the 1991 Omnibus Transportation
Employees Testing Act, combined with more recent court
decisions, have expanded the scope of these rules considerably.

The last major revisions of DOT's testing rules were issued in
February 1994. These rules expanded DOT testing to include
all employers whose drivers are required to hold Commercial
Drivers Licenses (CDLs), and almost all providers of public
transportation services. Moreover, these rules added alcohol
testing to the DOT testing program.

Entities who receive funding from the Federal Transit
Administration's (FTA) Section 3, Section 9 or Section 18 public
transit funding programs must comply with FTA's drug and
alcohol testing rules. All other entities with drivers who operate
buses or vans designed to seat 16 or more persons (including
the driver) must comply with the Federal Highway
Administration's (FHWA) drug and alcohol testing rules. The full
test of FHWA's rules is found in Title 49 of the Code of Federal
Regulations, at Part 382 of FHWA's Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Regulations.

Employers with 50 or more covered drivers were required to
begin implementing FHWA's drug and alcohol testing rules on
January 1, 1995. All other employers of drivers required to hold
CDLs must begin implementing these rules on January 1, 1996.

Who Must Comply?

The cornerstone of FHWA's testing rules in the Commercial
Drivers License (CDL). A CDL, is required to legally operate a
vehicle designed to carry 16 or more persons (including the
driver). It should be noted that this 16-person threshold applies
to the original design of a vehicle. For example, if a van or small
bus originally was designed to seat 16 passengers but had
several seats removed to accommodate wheelchair securement
locations, its driver must hold a CDL, even though the modified
vehicle may have fewer than 16 seats.

Central Illinois Drug Screening

	Federal Transit Administration (FTA)	Federal Highway Adminsitration (FHWA)
Affected Employers	Recipients of FTA Section 3, Section 9 or Section 18 funding must comply with FTA's testing rules.	All employers of persons required to holdCDLs must comply with FHWA's testing rules, except FTA Section 3, 9 or 18 grantees.
Covered Employees	All drivers, vehicle maintenance personnel, dispatchers and front-line supervisors must be tested, except (a) volunteer drivers who do not need CDLs and (b) rural third-party maintenance personnel.	All drivers and other personnel whose duties require them to hold a CDL (suchas some maintenance personnel) must be tested.
Applicability to Volunteers	Volunteer drivers who do not need CDLs are exempt from testing; all other volunteers must be tested.	All volunteers must be tested.
Post-Accident Testing	FTA requires post-accident testing following an incident that results in loss of life, causes non-fatal injuries requiring emergency medical attention, or causes disabling damage to a vehicle.	FHWA requires post-accident testing following an incident that results in loss of life, or in which the driver is cited for a moving traffic violation.
Compliance	FTA requires annual reports on affected employers' testing programs; this is a condition of continued FTA assistance.	FHWA randomly surveys FHWA- registered motor carriers to monitor compliance with its testing rules.

If an employer has vehicles which legally can be operated only by CDL-holding drivers, the employer must include
these drivers in an FHWA testing. The only exception is if the employer receives funding through one of three
FTA grant programs: Section 3 discretionary capital grants, Section 9 urban transit formula grants, or Section 18
rural transit formula grants. These FTA grantees must comply with FTA's testing rules rather than FHWA's testing
rules.

Some important points about the coverage of FHWA's rules must be noted:

      * FHWA's rules apply to all drivers required to hold CDLs, regardless of whether they are full-time, part-time
          for volunteer drivers. Nor does it matter whether these employers are public bodies, for-profit companies,
          nonprofit entities, churches, schools, etc.. There are no exceptions.
      * FHWA's rules do not call for disciplinary action or termination of employees testing positive for drugs or
          alcohol.
      * A driver is not to consume alcohol within the 4 hours preceding driving or performing any other
          safety-sensitive duty, nor while driving or performing any other safety-sensitive duty.
      * A driver is not allowed to have alcohol, even in an unopened container, on the vehicle while driving or
          performing safety-sensitive duties.
      * Employers are not to allow drivers to drive or perform other safety-sensitive duties if they know of drug or
          alcohol use in violation of FHWA's rule.

What About Volunteers?

Volunteer drivers are not exempt from FHWA's rules. However, a limited number of volunteer-based organizations
may be able to take advantage of an FHWA-sanctioned alternative approach to its rules. If the volunteer-using
entity can document that its volunteer drivers are participating satisfactorily in another FHWA testing program, the
entity does not need to include these volunteers in a testing program of its own.