Driver impairment causes deadly wrecks every day. As of November 18, 2024, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is further restricting commercial vehicle drivers who have drug and alcohol violations.
Truckers with a “prohibited” Clearinghouse status will lose their commercial driver’s licenses and must complete a return-to-duty process to re-earn it.
We’ve compiled everything you need to know about the new rule, including what the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse is, how drivers can keep a clean record, and what this means for you.
What Is the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse?
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is an organization that regulates commercial vehicle activity to reduce crashes and enhance safety on our roads. In January of 2020, it established the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse.
The Clearinghouse is a searchable online database that stores commercial driver drug and alcohol violations. With it, employers can record their drivers’ drug and alcohol records and screen prospective employees. Drivers can access their own records on the database, as well.
The Clearinghouse pertains to all commercial motor vehicle drivers, including but not limited to:
- Semi tractor-trailer drivers
- School bus drivers
- Construction equipment operators
- Dump truck drivers
Drug and Alcohol Testing for Commercial Vehicle Drivers
As of September 2024, more than 5 million drivers are registered in the Clearinghouse. The FMCSA states that employers are required to conduct Clearinghouse queries when hiring new drivers. They also must annually query all license holders that they employ.
In 2023, there were 69,178 violations reported to the Clearinghouse — the most since its beginning in 2020.
About 98% of these were drug violations: categorized into either actual knowledge of a drug violation, drug test refusal, or positive drug test. The remaining 2% were alcohol violations, divided among actual knowledge of an alcohol violation, alcohol test refusal, or blood alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater.
According to FMCSA, licensed drivers must pass a drug test before an employer can allow them to operate a commercial motor vehicle. Other test occasions are after wrecks, randomly throughout the year, with reasonable suspicion, and the return-to-duty and follow-up testing discussed earlier.
The Department of Transportation tests for marijuana, cocaine, opiates, amphetamines/methamphetamines, and phencyclidine. It tests for alcohol levels of 0.02 and higher.
A refusal to submit drug or alcohol testing is equivalent to a positive test, meaning it is also logged in the Clearinghouse and will result in “prohibited” status and loss of licensure.
New Clearinghouse Rule Holds Thousands of Truckers Accountable
The FMCSA’s new rule took effect as of November 18, 2024. It established that any driver with a “prohibited” Clearinghouse status not only loses their driving privileges, but also that they lose their commercial driver’s license (CDL) or commercial driver’s permit (CDP).
The Department of Transportation website states, “The Clearinghouse II final rule supports FMCSA’s goal of ensuring that only qualified drivers are eligible to receive and retain a CDL, thereby reducing the number and severity of CMV crashes.”
As of October 1st this year, nearly 179,000 commercial driver’s license and permit holders were listed under prohibited status in the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse.
Drivers who lose or are denied licenses as a result of the new rule can re-earn them by following Clearinghouse protocol.
How Can Semi Drivers Re-Earn Their Cdls?
About 76% — more than 136,000 — of these prohibited drivers have not yet begun the return-to-duty process to re-earn their licenses. FMCSA has outlined steps truckers must take to become “not prohibited” and get back on the road.
- First, find a substance abuse professional. Employers are required to provide a list of DOT-qualified substance abuse professionals, who can evaluate truckers and recommend treatment or next steps. These professionals are responsible for determining when a driver is ready for their return-to-duty test.
- Next, take the return-to-duty test. The employer must order this alcohol and controlled-substance testing.
- Lastly, attain “not prohibited” status and return to duty. If a driver’s drug and alcohol tests come back clean, their Clearinghouse status will be updated. Follow-up testing over the next year will ensure truckers can perform safety-sensitive functions.
Drivers will be subject to at least six unannounced follow-up tests in the first 12 months of their return to duty. If they pass, they can keep their newly reinstated commercial driver’s licenses or permits.
Kicking Impaired Driving to the Curb
Drivers of vehicles like semi tractor-trailers, school buses, and other large trucks have a responsibility to use extreme caution when driving. Being under the influence of drugs or alcohol compromises a driver’s ability to make decisions and operate a vehicle.
The Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse’s new rule will eliminate dangerous drivers and hold them accountable for their behavior.
At Craig, Kelley & Faultless, we see how irresponsible drivers can tear lives apart. I have represented victims of impaired truck drivers, like a young woman who was severely injured by a semi-truck driver high on meth. We represented another gentleman who was killed by an impaired driver. Our client’s family is still suffering, and the trucker who killed him is now out of jail, living a normal life.
With 37 people dying each day in drunk-driving crashes, this issue has never been more urgent. If you or someone you know has been injured in a wreck caused by a trucker using drugs or alcohol, reach out to a truck-wreck attorney as soon as possible.
Contact the Experts at Craig, Kelley & Faultless
David W. Craig sits on the Board of Regents of the Academy of Truck Accident Attorneys (which requires the board certification in truck accident law). He is the managing partner and one of the founding partners of Craig, Kelley & Faultless LLC. He is recognized as a Top 10 Trucking Trial Lawyer and Top 100 Trial Lawyer in Indiana by the National Trial Lawyers, as well as a Top 50 Indiana lawyer by Super Lawyers. David is the author of Semitruck Wreck, A Guide for Victims and Their Families, written to help people navigate a terrible situation by answering questions that come after a tragic wreck. He also hosts the podcast After the Crash, where you can gain valuable information about the dangers involving semis and large trucks that do not follow Indiana law safety protocol regarding speed, weather conditions, maintenance upkeep, etc.
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