As we expected here and here, the day has finally come. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced Friday that it had issued a Final Rule establishing a drug and alcohol clearinghouse for holders of commercial drivers’ licenses. The effective date of the Final Rule is January 6, 2017, but transportation employers will not have to start complying with the rule until January 2020.

Here’s the word from the FMSCA’s website:

The clearinghouse database will serve as a central repository containing records of violations of FMCSA’s drug and alcohol testing program by commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders. . . . 

Once the clearinghouse is established, motor carrier employers will be required to query the system for information concerning current or prospective employees who have unresolved violations of the federal drug and alcohol testing regulations that prohibit them from operating a commercial motor vehicle (CMV). It also requires employers and medical review officers to report drug and alcohol testing program violations.

I will be hosting a webinar on this topic in early January.