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Regulatory Guidance

Welcome to the FMCSA Guidance Portal. This web portal is a searchable, indexed database that contains and links to all guidance documents in effect from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The guidance documents lack the force and effect of law, unless expressly authorized by statute or incorporated into a contract.

To comment on any guidance document, or to request issuance, reconsideration, modification, or rescission of any guidance document, please identify the guidance document in your request and send it to: FMCSAguidance@dot.gov. NOTE: The FMCSAguidance mailbox is not intended to serve as a mailbox for general inquiries. For inquiries that go beyond the limited purpose of the FMCSAguidance mailbox, please call FMCSA's Information Line (800-832-5660) or visit FMCSA's "Contact Us" page to send your inquiry to the appropriate mailbox.

Subject Agency Identifier Topic Issued Date
The Custody and Control Form for a pre-employment DOT test mistakenly indicated that the test was conducted pursuant to the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) authority. The form should have indicated that the employee was a CDL-driver, being tested FMCSA-D&A-382.301-FAQ001 Guidance on whether identifying the wrong DOT mode on the Custody and Control Form for a preemployment test would result in the test being cancelled and recollection required.
Return-to-duty/Pre-employment Testing: What type of DOT tests must an employer provide in order to hire a driver who has completed the referral and evaluation process with a SAP, but still needs a return-to-duty test before the driver may perform a safety FMCSA-D&A-382.301-FAQ003 Guidance on conducting a single DOT test to satisfy both the requirements for a return-to-duty and preemployment test.
Alternate Drivers and Random Testing: Can an alternate driver be selected for a DOT random test if the driver originally selected is not able to be tested during the selection period? FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ001 Provides guidance in the use of alternates to comply with the random testing selections.
Determination of DOT Agency Random Testing Pool: When an employee is subject to the alcohol and controlled substance testing rules of more than one DOT agency (e.g., PHMSA & FMCSA), how is it determined which DOT agency’s random testing rate applies to th FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ002 Guidance on how to manage dual-agency covered employees.
Frequency of Selection: How often should selections take place under an employer’s random testing program? FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ003 Guidance that random testing programs must be spread reasonably throughout the calendar year.
Management of Drug and Alcohol Testing: Does an employer have to join a consortium in order to have its drivers random drug tested or can the drug and alcohol program be managed by the employer? FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ004 Clarifies the need of employer with only one driver to join a consortium.
If an employee performs safety-sensitive functions for two different employers, is the employee subject to each of the employer’s DOT drug and alcohol testing programs. FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ005 Provides guidance for employers working for two DOT covered employers.
Multiple Locations and Random Testing: Can an employer make random drug and alcohol testing selections by terminal if the company has multiple locations? FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ006 Guidance on how to handle the random testing of employees in different locations or terminals.
Testing Pool Inclusions: Can an employer include in the DOT random testing pool non-CDL drivers who operate motor vehicles weighing less than 26,001 pounds? FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ007 Guidance on whether non-DOT covered employees may be placed in the DOT random testing pool.
Random Testing Selection Period: A motor carrier conducts a DOT random test on a driver that was selected in the fourth quarter of the year, but the test was not verified by the medical review officer (MRO) until the next year. What year does this DOT ran FMCSA-D&A-382.305-FAQ008 Guidance on when to report a random test that has been collected at the end of the year, but verified the following year.