SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Commercial Driver's License Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse.

OMB Control Number: 2126-0057.

Type of Request: Renewal of an approved ICR.

Respondents: Motor carriers (employers), drivers, MROs, SAPs, consortia/third-party administrators (C/TPAs), and SDLAs.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 9,834,949.

Estimated Time per Response: Varies; 10 to 20 minutes.

Expiration Date: August 31, 2026.

Frequency of Response: On occasion.

A user's role will determine the frequency of the response in the Clearinghouse.

• Employers, or C/TPAs acting on behalf of an employer: At a minimum, employers are required to query the Clearinghouse for each driver they currently employ at least once a year. Employers must query the Clearinghouse for all prospective employees, as needed. In addition, employers report to the Clearinghouse ( printed page 49484) alcohol confirmation tests with a concentration of 0.04 or higher, refusal to test (alcohol), refusal to test (drug) that is not determined by an MRO, and actual knowledge of violations, negative RTD testing, and completion of the follow-up testing plan. Employer reporting must be completed by the close of the third business day following the date they obtained the information on the driver.
• MROs: Verified positive, adulterated, or substituted drug test result and refusals to tests (drug) must be entered to the Clearinghouse on occasion, but no later than 2 business days after making a determination or verification.
• SAPs: Must enter the initial assessment date and the date the driver successfully complied with RTD requirements. SAPs are required to enter this information on occasion by the close of business day following the date of the initial assessment or completion of the RTD process.
• SDLAs: May query the Clearinghouse prior to specified licensing transactions to determine whether drivers are listed in the “prohibited status.”
• Drivers: Provide general consent to employer queries outside of the Clearinghouse.
• Drivers: Must provide their specific consent to pre-employment queries electronically through the Clearinghouse.

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 1,653,032 hours.

Background

Agency regulations at 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 382 apply to persons and employers of such persons who operate CMVs in commerce in the United States and who are subject to the CDL requirements in 49 CFR part 383 or the equivalent CDL requirements for Canadian and Mexican drivers operating in the United States (49 CFR 382.103(a)). Part 382 requires that employers conduct pre-employment drug testing; random, post-accident, and reasonable suspicion drug and alcohol testing; and RTD testing and follow-up testing for those drivers who test positive or otherwise violate DOT drug and alcohol program requirements. Motor carrier employers are prohibited from allowing an employee to perform safety-sensitive functions, which include operating a CMV, if the employee tests positive on a DOT drug or alcohol test, refuses to take the required test, or otherwise violates FMCSA's drug and alcohol testing regulations.

Section 32402 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (Pub. L. 112-141, 126 Stat. 405 (2012)) required that the Secretary of Transportation (the Secretary) establish, operate, and maintain a national clearinghouse for records relating to alcohol and controlled substances testing of CMV operators to improve compliance with the DOT's alcohol and controlled substances testing program and to enhance the safety of our roadways by reducing crashes and injuries involving the misuse of alcohol or use of controlled substances by operators of CMVs. FMCSA published a final rule on December 5, 2016, with an effective date of January 4, 2017, and a compliance date of January 6, 2020, to implement the requirements of the Clearinghouse (81 FR 87686). In September 2019 FMCSA first began collecting data relating to authorized users' registration in the Clearinghouse. On January 6, 2020, FMCSA began collecting data related to drivers' drug and alcohol program violations and associated return to duty process, as well as allowing queries conducted by employers on CDL or CLP holders.

The Clearinghouse functions as a repository for records relating to the positive test results and test refusals of CMV operators and violations by such operators of prohibitions set forth in 49 CFR, part 382, subpart B. An employer utilizes the Clearinghouse to determine whether current and prospective employees have incurred a drug or alcohol program violation that would prohibit them from performing safety-sensitive functions, including operating a CMV.

The Clearinghouse provides FMCSA and employers with the necessary tools to identify drivers who are prohibited from operating a CMV and ensure that such drivers receive the required evaluation and treatment before resuming safety-sensitive functions. Specifically, information maintained in the Clearinghouse will ensure that drivers who commit a drug or alcohol program violation while working for one employer and attempt to find work with another employer can no longer conceal their drug and alcohol violations merely by moving on to the next job or the next State. Drug and alcohol violation records maintained in the Clearinghouse follow the driver regardless of how many times he or she changes employers, seeks employment, or applies for a CDL in a different State.

The information in the Clearinghouse is used by FMCSA and its State partners for enforcement purposes to:

• Ensure employers are meeting their pre-employment investigation and reporting requirements.
• Place drivers out of service if drivers are found to be operating a CMV without completing the RTD process; and
• Ensure medical review officers (MROs) and substance abuse professionals (SAPs) meet their reporting requirements.

Only authorized users, including employers and their service agents, Federal and State enforcement personnel, and State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLAs) may register and access the Clearinghouse for designated purposes. State enforcement personnel may also receive the driver's eligibility status to operate a CMV, based on Clearinghouse information, when they check Query Central, the Commercial Driver's License Information System, or the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System for driver information. FMCSA will share a driver's drug and alcohol violation information with the National Transportation Safety Board when it is investigating a crash involving that driver.

Drivers may access their own information, but not the information of other drivers. The Clearinghouse meets all relevant Federal security standards and FMCSA continuously monitors compliance with applicable security regulations.

Public Comments Received: A total of 88 comments were received with 71 by June 1, 2026, deadline. Information collection comments received suggested changes to the current regulation. Comments provided recommended changes to the underlying drug and alcohol regulations but did not directly address the published costs or burdens hours associated with the information collection. For example, it was widely suggested that SAPs have access to complete driver information and violation history. Associated comments included that SAPs should also be required to upload a copy of a driver's follow-up testing plan to the Clearinghouse. Additionally, recommendations of Clearinghouse SAP credentialing verification were received. In this renewal of the approval of information collection, FMCSA sought comments on burden and costs associated with the current rule. Suggested changes to the current rule would be facilitated through a notice of proposed rulemaking per 49 CFR 389.31.

Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of this information collection, including: (1) ( printed page 49485) whether the proposed collection is necessary for the performance of FMCSA's functions; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways for FMCSA to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and (4) ways that the burden could be minimized without reducing the quality of the collected information.

91 FR 49483