49 U.S.C. § 5331 : US Code - Section 5331: Alcohol and controlled substances testing

Search 49 U.S.C. § 5331 : US Code - Section 5331: Alcohol and controlled substances testing

(a) Definitions. - In this section -
(1) "controlled substance" means any substance under section
102 of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of
1970 (21 U.S.C. 802) whose use the Secretary of Transportation
decides has a risk to transportation safety.
(2) "person" includes any entity organized or existing under
the laws of the United States, a State, territory, or possession
of the United States, or a foreign country.
(3) "public transportation" means any form of public
transportation, except a form the Secretary decides is covered
adequately, for employee alcohol and controlled substances
testing purposes, under section 20140 or 31306 of this title or
section 2303a, 7101(i), or 7302(e) of title 46. The Secretary may
also decide that a form of public transportation is covered
adequately, for employee alcohol and controlled substances
testing purposes, under the alcohol and controlled substance
statutes or regulations of an agency within the Department of
Transportation or the Coast Guard.
(b) Testing Program for Public Transportation Employees. - (1)(A)
In the interest of public transportation safety, the Secretary
shall prescribe regulations that establish a program requiring
public transportation operations that receive financial assistance
under section 5307, 5309, or 5311 of this title to conduct
preemployment, reasonable suspicion, random, and post-accident
testing of public transportation employees responsible for safety-
sensitive functions (as decided by the Secretary) for the use of a
controlled substance in violation of law or a United States
Government regulation, and to conduct reasonable suspicion, random,
and post-accident testing of such employees for the use of alcohol
in violation of law or a United States Government regulation. The
regulations shall permit such operations to conduct preemployment
testing of such employees for the use of alcohol.
(B) When the Secretary of Transportation considers it appropriate
in the interest of safety, the Secretary may prescribe regulations
for conducting periodic recurring testing of public transportation
employees responsible for safety-sensitive functions (as decided by
the Secretary) for the use of alcohol or a controlled substance in
violation of law or a Government regulation.
(2) In prescribing regulations under this subsection, the
Secretary of Transportation -
(A) shall require that post-accident testing of such a public
transportation employee be conducted when loss of human life
occurs in an accident involving public transportation; and
(B) may require that post-accident testing of such a public
transportation employee be conducted when bodily injury or
significant property damage occurs in any other serious accident
involving public transportation.
(c) Disqualifications for Use. - (1) When the Secretary of
Transportation considers it appropriate, the Secretary shall
require disqualification for an established period of time or
dismissal of any employee referred to in subsection (b)(1) of this
section who is found -
(A) to have used or been impaired by alcohol when on duty; or
(B) to have used a controlled substance, whether or not on
duty, except as allowed for medical purposes by law or
regulation.
(2) This section does not supersede any penalty applicable to a
public transportation employee under another law.
(d) Testing and Laboratory Requirements. - In carrying out
subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary of Transportation
shall develop requirements that shall -
(1) promote, to the maximum extent practicable, individual
privacy in the collection of specimens;
(2) for laboratories and testing procedures for controlled
substances, incorporate the Department of Health and Human
Services scientific and technical guidelines dated April 11,
1988, and any amendments to those guidelines, including mandatory
guidelines establishing -
(A) comprehensive standards for every aspect of laboratory
controlled substances testing and laboratory procedures to be
applied in carrying out this section, including standards
requiring the use of the best available technology to ensure
the complete reliability and accuracy of controlled substances
tests and strict procedures governing the chain of custody of
specimens collected for controlled substances testing;
(B) the minimum list of controlled substances for which
individuals may be tested; and
(C) appropriate standards and procedures for periodic review
of laboratories and criteria for certification and revocation
of certification of laboratories to perform controlled
substances testing in carrying out this section;
(3) require that a laboratory involved in controlled substances
testing under this section have the capability and facility, at
the laboratory, of performing screening and confirmation tests;
(4) provide that all tests indicating the use of alcohol or a
controlled substance in violation of law or a Government
regulation be confirmed by a scientifically recognized method of
testing capable of providing quantitative information about
alcohol or a controlled substance;
(5) provide that each specimen be subdivided, secured, and
labeled in the presence of the tested individual and that a part
of the specimen be retained in a secure manner to prevent the
possibility of tampering, so that if the individual's
confirmation test results are positive the individual has an
opportunity to have the retained part tested by a 2d confirmation
test done independently at another certified laboratory if the
individual requests the 2d confirmation test not later than 3
days after being advised of the results of the first confirmation
test;
(6) ensure appropriate safeguards for testing to detect and
quantify alcohol in breath and body fluid samples, including
urine and blood, through the development of regulations that may
be necessary and in consultation with the Secretary of Health and
Human Services;
(7) provide for the confidentiality of test results and medical
information (except information about alcohol or a controlled
substance) of employees, except that this clause does not prevent
the use of test results for the orderly imposition of appropriate
sanctions under this section; and
(8) ensure that employees are selected for tests by
nondiscriminatory and impartial methods, so that no employee is
harassed by being treated differently from other employees in
similar circumstances.
(e) Rehabilitation. - The Secretary of Transportation shall
prescribe regulations establishing requirements for rehabilitation
programs that provide for the identification and opportunity for
treatment of any public transportation employee referred to in
subsection (b)(1) of this section who is found to have used alcohol
or a controlled substance in violation of law or a Government
regulation. The Secretary shall decide on the circumstances under
which employees shall be required to participate in a program. This
subsection does not prevent a public transportation operation from
establishing a program under this section in cooperation with
another public transportation operation.
(f) Relationship to Other Laws, Regulations, Standards, and
Orders. - (1) A State or local government may not prescribe, issue,
or continue in effect a law, regulation, standard, or order that is
inconsistent with regulations prescribed under this section.
However, a regulation prescribed under this section does not
preempt a State criminal law that imposes sanctions for reckless
conduct leading to loss of life, injury, or damage to property.
(2) In prescribing regulations under this section, the Secretary
of Transportation -
(A) shall establish only requirements that are consistent with
international obligations of the United States; and
(B) shall consider applicable laws and regulations of foreign
countries.
(g) Ineligibility for Assistance. - A person is not eligible for
financial assistance under section 5307, 5309, or 5311 of this
title if the person is required, under regulations the Secretary of
Transportation prescribes under this section, to establish a
program of alcohol and controlled substances testing and does not
establish the program.