DRUG & ALCOHOL CLEARING HOUSE

The Clearinghouse is a secure online database that gives employers, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs), and State law enforcement personnel real-time information about commercial driver’s license (CDL) and commercial learner’s permit (CLP) holders’ drug and alcohol program violations.

The Clearinghouse contains records of violations of drug and alcohol prohibitions in 49 CFR Part 382, Subpart B, including positive drug or alcohol test results and test refusals. When a driver completes the return-to-duty (RTD) process and follow-up testing plan, this information is also recorded in the Clearinghouse.

An individual with an employer or consortium/third-party administrator (C/TPA) who can manage users on behalf of their company. Credentialed medical review officers (MROs) and substance abuse professionals (SAPs) are also considered Clearinghouse Administrators and can invite Clearinghouse Assistants.

All CDL drivers who operate CMVs on public roads and their employers and service agents. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Interstate and intrastate motor carriers, including passenger carriers
• School bus drivers
• Construction equipment operators
• Limousine drivers
• Municipal vehicle drivers (e.g., waste management vehicles)
• Federal and other organizations that employ drivers subject to FMCSA drug and alcohol testing regulations (e.g., Department of Defense, municipalities, school districts)

The Clearinghouse offers employers a centralized location to query driver information and report drug and alcohol program violations incurred by their current and prospective employees holding CDLs and CLPs. The employer must use the Clearinghouse to:

• Conduct a full query of the Clearinghouse as part of each pre-employment driver investigation process.
• Conduct limited queries at least annually for every driver they employ.
• Request electronic consent from the driver for a full query, including pre-employment queries.
• Report drug and alcohol program violations.
• Record the negative return-to-duty (RTD) test results and the date of successful completion of a follow-up testing plan for any driver they employ with unresolved drug and alcohol program violations.

Drivers may:

• View their own driver record electronically.
• Provide electronic consent to release detailed drug and alcohol program violation information to a current or prospective employer.
• Identify a substance abuse professional (SAP) so the SAP may enter specific information regarding the driver’s return-to-duty (RTD) activities.

 The Clearinghouse will notify the driver using the method indicated during the driver’s Clearinghouse registration—either mail or email—any time information about the driver is added, revised, or removed. If the driver has not yet registered for the Clearinghouse, these notifications will be sent by mail using the address associated with the driver’s commercial driver’s license (CDL).