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| MEDICAL-MARIJUANA DOT OFFICE OF DRUG AND ALCOHOL POLICY AND COMPLIANCE NOTICE The Department of Transportation’s Drug and Alcohol Testing Regulation – 49 CFR Part 40, at 40.151(e) – does not authorize “medical marijuana” under a state law to be a valid medical explanation for a transportation employee’s positive drug test result. Recently, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued guidelines for Federal prosecutors in states that have enacted laws authorizing the use of “medical marijuana.” http://www.justice. gov/opa/documents/medical-marijuana.pdf. We have had several inquiries about whether the DOJ advice to Federal prosecutors regarding pursuing criminal cases will have an impact upon the Department of Transportation’s longstanding regulation about the use of marijuana by safety-sensitive transportation employees – pilots, school bus drivers, truck drivers, train engineers, subway operators, aircraft maintenance personnel, transit fire-armed security personnel, ship captains, and pipeline emergency response personnel, among others. We want to make it perfectly clear that the DOJ guidelines will have no bearing on the Department of Transportation’s regulated drug testing program. We will not change our regulated drug testing program based upon these guidelines to Federal prosecutors. That section states: § 40.151 What are MROs prohibited from doing as part of the verification process? As an MRO, you are prohibited from doing the following as part of the verification process: (e) You must not verify a test negative based on information that a physician recommended that the employee use a drug listed in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. (e.g., under a state law that purports to authorize such recommendations, such as the “medical marijuana” laws that some states have adopted.) Therefore, Medical Review Officers will not verify a drug test as negative based upon information that a physician recommended that the employee use “medical marijuana.” Please note that marijuana remains a drug listed in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. It remains unacceptable for any safety-sensitive employee subject to drug testing under the Department of Transportation’s drug testing regulations to use marijuana. We want to assure the traveling public that our transportation system is the safest it can possibly be. Jim L. Swart Director Office of the Secretary of Transportation Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance Department of Transportation |
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| See Important D.O.T. Updates at Bottom of Page |
| DOT FINING DRIVERS WITH VIOLATIONS WHO CONTINUE TO DRIVE WITHOUT COMPLETING SAP RETURN-TO-DUTY PROCESS. HERE ARE THE REGS 49 CFR Part 382.103(a): "This part applies to every person and to all employers of such persons..." 49 CFR Part 382.507: Any employer or driver who violates...shall be subject to...civil and/or criminal penalty provisions..." Under this regulation, a driver and an employer are equally responsible for consequences of a violation. For example: a driver is part-time with Company A and part-time with Company B. He tests positive on a Company A test, and is removed from safety-sensitive functions, including driving. He also must be removed from safety-sensitive functions for Company B. But he must first inform Company B of the violation. If he does not, he faces serious fines for driving, when he knows he cannot drive. Because of confidentiality, Company A could not report the violation to Company B. The driver is the only source of this information. Drivers need to be aware that they cannot safely hide a violation from other employers, or from any future employers. |
| How the SAP Process Works The process works like this: · Evaluation. You meet with a SAP who conducts an evaluation. The evaluation process takes approximately 2 hours to complete. Several evaluative instruments are administered. · Determination. The SAP determines if you need assistance with the alcohol misuse or illegal drug problem. The SAP must provide appropriate documentation to that person who is your company's designated employer representative (DER) to the Department of Transportation (DOT). · Education or treatment referral. The SAP will refer you to the appropriate education or treatment services based upon the needs identified in your evaluation. At a minimum, the SAP or SAP must recommend substance abuse education. If necessary, you will receive a referral to two facilities that provide the services you are required to complete. · Return-to-duty evaluation: The SAP will conduct follow-up evaluation to determine if you have complied with the recommendations for treatment or education that you were given when you first evaluation. · Follow-up testing. The SAP will develope a follow-up testing schedule. The SAP may recommend drug and alcohol testing for those employees who have problems of abuse of more than one substance. You are required to complete at least six tests in the first year upon your return to safety sensitive duty on your job. The SAP will recommend continuation of testing up to sixty months. The SAP may also recommend a "continuing care" regimen (aftercare, meeting with your 12-Step sponsor, 12-Step meetings, etc). |