[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 3 (Tuesday, January 6, 1998)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 418-419]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-217]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

49 CFR Parts 653 and 654


Prevention of Prohibited Drug Use in Transit Operations; 
Prevention of Alcohol Misuse in Transit Operations

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of random drug and alcohol testing rate.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice announces the random testing rates for employers

[[Page 419]]

subject to the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) drug and alcohol 
rules.

EFFECTIVE DATE: January 1, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Judy Meade, Director of the Office of Safety and Security (202) 366-
2896 (telephone) and (202) 366-7951 (fax). Electronic access to this 
and other documents concerning FTA's drug and alcohol testing rules may 
be obtained through FTA's Transit Safety and Security Bulletin Board at 
1-800-231-2061 or through the FTA World Wide Web home page at http://
www.fta.dot.gov; both services are available seven days a week.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) 
required large transit employers to begin drug and alcohol testing 
``safety-sensitive'' employees on January 1, 1995, and to report, 
annually by March 15 of each year beginning in 1996, the number of 
``safety-sensitive'' employees who had a verified positive for the use 
of prohibited drugs, and the number of safety-sensitive employees who 
tested positive for the misuse of alcohol. Small employers started 
testing their ``safety-sensitive'' employees on January 1, 1996, and 
began reporting the same information as the large employers beginning 
on March 15, 1997. Employers are required annually to submit other 
data, not relevant here, in the same report; these data are available 
from the FTA as discussed below.
    The rules established a random testing rate for prohibited drugs 
and the misuse of alcohol; specifically, the rules require that 
employers conduct random drug tests at a rate equivalent to at least 50 
percent of their total number of safety-sensitive employees for 
prohibited drug use and at least 25 percent for the misuse of alcohol. 
The rules provide that the drug random testing rate may be lowered to 
25 percent if the ``positive rate'' for the entire transit industry is 
less than one percent for two consecutive years. Once lowered, it may 
be raised to 50 percent if the positive rate equals or exceeds one 
percent for any one year. (``Positive rate'' means the number of 
positive results for random drug tests conducted under part 653 plus 
the number of refusals of random tests required by part 653, divided by 
the total number of random drug tests, plus the number of refusals of 
random tests required by part 653.)
    Likewise, the alcohol rule provides that the random rate may be 
lowered to 10 percent if the ``violation rate'' for the entire transit 
industry is less than .5 percent for two consecutive years. It will 
remain at 25 percent if the ``violation rate'' is equal to or greater 
than .5 percent but less than one percent, and it will be raised to 50 
percent if the ``violation rate'' is one percent or greater for any one 
year. (``Violation rate'' means the number of covered employees found 
during random tests given under part 654 to have an alcohol 
concentration of .04 or greater, plus the number of employees who 
refuse a random test required by part 654, divided by the total 
reported number of random alcohol tests conducted under part 654, plus 
the total number of refusals of random tests, required by part 654.)
    FTA has received and analyzed the 1996 data from large and small 
transit employers. The ``positive rate'' for random drug tests was 1.5 
percent and the ``violation rate'' for random alcohol tests was 0.21 
percent; therefore, for 1998, transit employers will continue to be 
required to conduct random drug tests at a rate equivalent to at least 
50 percent of the total number of their ``safety-sensitive'' employees 
for prohibited drugs. Because the random alcohol violation rate was 
lower than .5 percent for two consecutive years (0.24 percent for 1995 
and 0.21 percent for 1996), the random alcohol testing rate will 
lowered to 10 percent for 1998.
    FTA will be publishing in December a detailed report on the 1996 
data collected from large and small employers. This report may be 
obtained from the Office of Safety and Security, Federal Transit 
Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW, Room 9301, Washington, DC 
20590, (202) 366-2896.

    Issued: December 31, 1997.
Gordon J. Linton,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 98-217 Filed 1-5-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-M