Procedures for Transportation Drug and Alcohol Testing Program

Five of the Department of Transportation’s Operating Administrations (OA) – Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG)[1] – require drug and alcohol testing for safety-sensitive employees in their regulated industries. With very few exceptions, however, all the drug and alcohol tests performed under the five OA and USCG regulations are conducted using a single source of drug and alcohol testing procedures – 49 CFR Part 40. The Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST) is the proponent of Part 40. Part 40 requires the collection of information from a variety of transportation employers, employees and service agents. To ensure the required quality (e.g., privacy, accuracy and confidentiality) of the drug and alcohol testing services provided, OST requires documentation in the collection of urine, breath, and saliva specimens; screening and confirmation of specimen tests; the medical review of results; and the treatment recommendations for those refusing to test or for testing positive for drug use or alcohol misuse. Records related to these activities are to be maintained. This information is used by employers and Department representatives to ensure that those refusing or testing positive are removed from safety-sensitive functions, that program problems are immediately identified and corrected, that quality assurance efforts are working, that security and privacy measures are upheld, and that the fairness and credibility of the Department’s testing efforts are maintained. Also, the Management Information System data that is collected (via the MIS form) is used by each of the affected DOT Agencies when calculating their industry’s annual random drug and/or alcohol testing rate.

The latest form for Procedures for Transportation Drug and Alcohol Testing Program expires 2023-12-31 and can be found here.