FMCSA’s Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse Management
The
FMCSA's CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse will be fully operational on January
6, 2020. Starting on this date, employers, including owner-operators, will need
to be registered to:
- Conduct queries
to access a driver’s Clearinghouse record, after obtaining the driver’s
consent. Beginning
January 6, you will be required to conduct a full query in the
Clearinghouse before hiring any CDL driver.
- Designate a consortium/third-party administrator
(C/TPA), if you work with one, which
enables your C/TPA to access the Clearinghouse on your behalf. This is a requirement of all
owner-operators.
- Purchase a query plan, which
must be in place before you, or your designated C/TPA, can conduct
queries.
- Report violations of FMCSA’s drug and alcohol testing program.
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Federally mandated by the FMCSA, motor carriers with CDL drivers will need to use the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse.
You
can prepare for January 6 by registering for the Clearinghouse today. (If
you have an FMCSA Portal account, ensure you have the correct Portal user role in place.)
What is the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse?
The FMCSA has created an online database to track drug and alcohol program violations nationwide, including positive drug or alcohol test results and refusals. The database can be queried to find out if a CDL driver has any drug or alcohol violations that would impact their ability to perform safety-sensitive functions. In addition, the database supports other related processes like Return-to-Duty, follow-up testing, SAP assignment, carrier and driver registration, password management, driver notifications, and driver consent tracking. The clearinghouse closes the loophole of drivers testing positive and future motor carriers not finding out.
How Does the Clearinghouse Impact You?
Fleets under the authority of FMCSA are required to register online and create an account this fall in order to access the Clearinghouse when it officially goes live in January. You will also need to change multiple business processes and procedures to comply with the new Clearinghouse requirements.
Your pre-employment screening process will need to include querying the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse for each potential new hire after the driver authorizes access to their data.
Performing at least one Clearinghouse query annually for every active CDL driver under your authority is required along with storing the driver’s consent in their DQ file.
In addition, fleets are responsible for entering all D&A program violations, including refusals, direct observations, and Return-to-Duty into the database within 3 business days of the occurrence.
Get prepared and start working with your D&A Clearinghouse or identify a TPA to work for you....
