The mandate to begin using the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse for Commercial Drivers took effect January 6 of this year and got off to a rocky start. Operators have questions and concerns moving forward. To address those issues, the United Motorcoach Association is hosting a free online video Town Hall on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Entitled, Updates & Clarifications on Utilizing the FMCSA Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse.
Learn how to attend the meeting on the UMA website.
Motorcoach operators are invited to phone in or join by computer to attend the meeting at 2:00 p.m. on February 27 on the Zoom platform. UMA board members Bethany Schubert of Trobec’s Bus Service and Matt Dance of Champion Coach will host the meeting which will be recorded and available to UMA members as a resource.
FMCSA created the clearinghouse, which is an online database, to help keep roads safer for all drivers by identifying, in real time, drivers prohibited from performing safety-sensitive functions, such as operating a commercial motor vehicle (CMV), due to a drug and alcohol program violation.
The Clearinghouse is a secure online database that gives employers, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs), and State law enforcement personnel real-time information about commercial driver’s license (CDL) and commercial learner’s permit (CLP) holders’ drug and alcohol program violations.
The Clearinghouse contains records of violations of drug and alcohol prohibitions in 49 CFR Part 382, Subpart B, including positive drug or alcohol test results and test refusals. When a driver completes the return-to-duty (RTD) process and follow-up testing plan, this information is also recorded in the Clearinghouse.
