OTA Dispatch Issue 4 2019

27 www.ortrucking.org Issue 4 | 2019 Employers have two reasons to query the Clearinghouse: hiring a new driver and performing annual queries on current drivers. When hiring new drivers, employers must run detailed queries to ensure the drivers are eligible to perform safety-sensitive functions. These queries should be done before performing a pre-employment drug test in order to avoid testing an ineligible driver. Employers must also run queries on all active drivers once per year. Employers can choose to run these queries at any time throughout the year such as at consortium renewal, insurance renewal, or at the drivers’ annual reviews. These can be limited or detailed queries. If choosing to run detailed queries, employers must get the drivers’ electronic consents each year. If choosing to run limited queries, employers must be aware that if a limited query discloses that information exists, a detailed query with driver consent must be run within 24 hours of the limited query or the driver must be removed from safety- sensitive functions until eligibility is determined. The FMCSA assesses a small fee of $1.25 for each query, limited or detailed. Employers must purchase queries through the Clearinghouse. Purchasing queries is not a responsibility that employers can delegate to TPAs. Query bundles are available to purchase to allow employers to buy queries in bulk. Purchased queries do not expire and can be carried over from year to year. Below is a table of query bundles that are available. OTHER CHANGES AND REQUIREMENTS DUE TO THE CLEARINGHOUSE The Clearinghouse has been developed to identify drivers by their CDL numbers. Every time a user reports or queries the Clearinghouse the user must identify the driver by CDL number. In order to ensure users such as MROs have access to drivers’ CDL numbers, the FMCSA will start requiring that CDL numbers and states be used to identify drivers in Step 1C of the Federal Chain of Custody Form (CCF). Previously, employers and collection sites could use social security numbers or even randomly assigned employee IDs. However, now Part 382.123 explicitly states that the drivers’ CDL numbers must be used for FMCSA drug and alcohol tests. Employers should be aware of this new requirement and start alerting collection sites of this regulation. The Clearinghouse will also eventually save employers from having to send drug and alcohol inquiries to previous employers. Motor carriers currently must inquire about any FMCSA drug and alcohol violations committed by a driver from previous employers over a 3-year period. With the Clearinghouse in place, employers will no longer need to do this inquiry for any previous employers the driver has worked for after January 6, 2020. By January 6, 2023, this inquiry will be obsolete. However, it is important to note, employers will still have to request SAP recommendations and information on how many follow-up tests have been completed from previous employers for drivers who haven’t completed their programs, as that information will not be available through the Clearinghouse. TPA ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES Employers, with the exception of owner-operators, can choose to designate a TPA to help comply with reporting and querying responsibilities. For owner-operators, a TPA must be designated to manage these responsibilities. TPAs must be registered with the Clearinghouse for employers to designate them. As with the other services employers may delegate to TPAs, employers will be held responsible for compliance. So, employers will want to ensure that their TPAs are educated and are offering these new services.  Brian Gray is an expert in drug & alcohol testing regulations. He can be reached by email at briang@cleanfleet.org. Record to be Reported Reporting User Timeframe A verified positive, adulterated, or substituted controlled substance test MRO 2 days Refusal to test, including failure to appear Employer or TPA 3 days A verified positive EBT above .039 Actual knowledge of illicit alcohol or drug use while operating a CMV Negative Return-to-Duty test result Completion of follow-up program Eligibility for Return-to-Duty testing SAP Same business day of determination # of Queries Plan Cost 1 $1.25 2 $2.50 3 $3.75 4 $5.00 5 $6.25 10 $12.50 20 $25.00 50 $62.50 100 $125.00 150 $187.50 200 $250.00 300 $375.00 500 $625.00 1,000 $1,250.00 1,500 $1,875.00 2,000 $2,500.00 2,500 $3,125.00 5,000 $6,250.00 7,500 $9,375.00