§ 382.701 Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse

(a) Pre-Employment Query Required

Employers must not employ a driver subject to controlled substances and alcohol testing under this part to perform a safety-sensitive function without first conducting a pre-employment query of the Clearinghouse.

This query must determine whether the driver:

• Has a verified positive, adulterated, or substituted controlled substances test result
• Has an alcohol confirmation test result of 0.04 or higher
• Has refused to submit to a test in violation of § 382.211
• Has been reported by an employer for actual knowledge (as defined in § 382.107) of:
  • Using alcohol on duty (§ 382.205)
  • Using alcohol before duty (§ 382.207)
  • Using alcohol following an accident (§ 382.209)
  • Using a controlled substance (§ 382.213)

The employer must conduct a full query, which provides detailed Clearinghouse information and requires specific consent from the driver.

(b) Annual Query Required

Employers must conduct a Clearinghouse query at least once per year for each employee subject to drug and alcohol testing under this part.

Instead of a full query, employers may:

• Obtain the driver’s consent to conduct a limited query
• A limited query reveals only whether information exists, not the details
• Driver consent for a limited query may be valid for more than one year

If a limited query indicates that information exists:

• The employer must conduct a full query within 24 hours
• If the full query is not completed within that time, the driver must be removed from safety-sensitive functions until the full query confirms no prohibitions

(c) Employer Notification

If any information described in paragraph (a) is entered into the Clearinghouse within 30 days of a query, FMCSA will notify the employer.

(d) Prohibition

No employer may permit a driver to perform any safety-sensitive function if a Clearinghouse query reveals any of the following:

• Verified positive, adulterated, or substituted drug test result
• Alcohol test result of 0.04 or higher
• Refusal to test in violation of § 382.211
• Actual knowledge of violations under § 382.205, § 382.207, § 382.209, or § 382.213

Exceptions apply if either of the following conditions is met:

The driver has:

• Completed the SAP evaluation, referral, and education/treatment process (per Part 40, Subpart O)
• Achieved a negative return-to-duty test result
• Completed the SAP’s follow-up testing plan

OR

The driver has:

• Completed the SAP evaluation, referral, and education/treatment process
• Achieved a negative return-to-duty test result
• Not yet completed all follow-up testing, and the employer agrees to manage the follow-up testing process

(e) Recordkeeping Required

Employers must retain:

• A record of each Clearinghouse query
• All information received from each query for three years

As of January 6, 2023, maintaining a valid Clearinghouse registration satisfies this recordkeeping requirement.

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