According to industry experts JJ Keller's yearly report, FMCSA and its state partners conducted over 12,300 investigations in 2023. Out of which 4,100 were on-site audits and 5,800 were on-site focused reviews. 2023 saw more auditors on the field than in 2022 and this trend is likely to see an uptick this year too. [...]
CDL drivers working for multiple employers are more common than you think. There are specific regulations from FMCSA regarding such drivers. Drivers who work for multiple employers are broadly classified into the following: Drivers who hold regular employment with multiple employers Drivers regularly employed by a motor carrier but occasionally drive for another motor [...]
As a DOT-regulated business, one primary component is staying compliant with drug and alcohol regulations. Complying with these regulations can be challenging for most businesses. And failure to comply can attract significant penalties that can be crippling to the health of such businesses. Most business owners think that these penalties are few and far [...]
For employers of CDL drivers, it is not always clear whether their drivers need to be in an FMCSA drug testing program. On the surface: If you meet one of the following criteria, you will need to have a DOT FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Testing Program: Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) or Gross Combination [...]
In today's compliance-driven landscape, employers operating within the transportation industry must be keenly aware of their obligations under 49 CFR Parts 40 and 382. These regulations, established by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), outline strict requirements for drug and alcohol testing of safety-sensitive employees. Failure to adhere to [...]
While consuming alcohol is legal in all US states for adults over the age of 21, it's illegal for CDL drivers to be have a breath alcohol concentration of .02 or over, while performing safety-sensitive tasks. Alcohol is known to cause an impaired sense of judgment and increased risky behavior on the road, which is [...]
For owner-operators, it’s critical for your business to stay in compliance with government regulations. Here’s an Owner Operator DOT compliance checklist to help you stay on top of the most common compliance requirements. 1) Drug and Alcohol Testing Owner-operators are required to participate in a Department of Transportation (DOT) Drug and Alcohol testing program. A [...]
The answer depends on whether the random selection program is a DOT regulated program or a non-DOT program. DOT has specific requirements. DOT Random Drug Testing In a DOT regulated random testing program, all random tests are supposed to be conducted in the period when the selections were made. An employee selected, for example, in [...]
As an Owner Operator, when you take on employees, your DOT FMCSA requirements change. 1) Written Drug & Alcohol Testing Policy Owner Operators do not really need to have a written substance abuse policy. Employers do. FMCSA regulation Part 382 specifically requires that employers have a written policy that is distributed to each driver. 362.601 [...]
What if a driver is involved in an accident? The rules for Post-Accident Testing state that if a vehicle is towed from the scene of an accident and the driver receives a traffic citation, that the employer must conduct a DOT Post-Accident Drug and Alcohol Test. Rule of Thumb: No ticket, no test. The Post-Accident [...]
