§382.105
Testing Procedures
Question 1: What does a BAT do when a test involves an
independent, self-employed owner-operator with a confirmed alcohol
concentration of 0.02 or greater, to notify a company representative as
required by §40.65(i)?
Guidance: The independent, self-employed
owner-operator will be notified by the BAT
immediately and the owner-operator's certification in Step 4 notes that the
self-employed owner-operator has been notified. No further notification is
necessary. The BAT will provide copies 1 and 2 to the self-employed
owner-operator directly.
Question 2: A driver does not have a
photo identification card. Must an employer representative identify the driver
in the presence of the BAT/urine specimen collector or may the employer
representative identify the driver via a telephone conversation?
Guidance: Those subject to part 382 are subject first,
generally, to part 383. Part 383 requires all States,
with an exception in Alaska for a very small group of individuals, to provide a
CDL document to the individual that
includes, among other things: the full name, signature, and mailing address of
the person to whom such license is issued; physical and other information to
identify and describe the person including date of birth (month, day, and
year), sex, and height; and, a color photograph of the person. Except in these
rare Alaskan instances, the FHWA
fully expects most employer's to require the driver to present the CDL document
to the BAT or urine collector.
A driver subject to alcohol and drug testing should be
able to provide the CDL document.
In those rare instances that the CDL or other form of photo identification is not produced for verification, an employer representative
must be contacted and must provide identification. The FHWA will allow employer
representatives to identify drivers in any way that the employer believes will
positively identify the driver.
Question 3: Will foreign drug
testing laboratories need to be certified by the National Institute on Drug
Abuse (NIDA)? Will they need to be certified by the Department of Health and
Human Services (DHHS)?
Guidance: The NIDA, an agency of the DHHS, no
longer administers the workplace drug testing laboratory certification program.
This program is now administered by the DHHS' Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration. All motor carriers are required to use DHHS-certified
laboratories for analysis of alcohol and controlled substances tests as neither
Question 4: Particularly in light of
the coverage of Canadian and Mexican employees, how should MROs
deal, in the verification process, with claims of the use of foreign
prescriptions or over-the-counter medication?
Guidance: Possession or use of controlled substances are
prohibited when operating a CMV under
the FHWA regulations regardless of
the source of the substance. A limited exception exists for a substance's use
in accordance with instructions provided by a licensed medical practitioner who
knows that the individual is a CMV driver who operates CMVs in a
safety-sensitive job and has provided instructions to the CMV driver that the
use of the substance will not affect the CMV driver's ability to safely operate
a CMV (see §382.213, 391.41(b)(12),
and 392.4(c)).
Individuals entering the
The FHWA
expects MROs
to properly investigate the facts concerning a CMV driver's claim that a positive
controlled substance test result was caused by a prescription written by a
knowledgeable, licensed medical practitioner or the use of an over-the-counter
substance that was obtained in a foreign country without a prescription. This
investigation should be documented in the MRO's files.
If the CMV
driver lawfully obtained a substance in a foreign country without a
prescription which is a controlled substance in the
Potential violations of §392.4 must be investigated
by the law enforcement officer at the time possession or use is discovered to
determine whether the exception applies.