[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 234 (Tuesday, December 5, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76000-76001]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-30922]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration


Antidrug and Alcohol Misuse Prevention Programs for Personnel 
Engaged in Specified Aviation Activities

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The FAA has determined that the minimum percentage rate for 
drug testing for the period January 1, 2001, through December 31, 2001, 
will remain at 25 percent of covered aviation employees for random drug 
testing and will remain at 10 percent of covered aviation employees for 
random alcohol testing.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Arnold N. Schwartz, Office of 
Aviation Medicine, Drug Abatement Division, Program Analysis Branch 
(AAM-810), Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, 
SW., Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 267-5970.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Administrator's Determination of 2001 Random Drug and Alcohol 
Testing Rates

    In final rules published in the Federal Register on February 15, 
and December 2, 1994 (59 FR 7380 and 62218, respectively), the FAA 
announced that

[[Page 76001]]

it will set future minimum annual percentage rates for random alcohol 
and drug testing for aviation industry employers according to the 
results which the employers experience conducting random alcohol and 
drug testing during each calendar year. The rules set forth the formula 
for calculating an annual aviation industry ``violation rate'' for 
random alcohol testing and an annual aviation industry ``positive 
rate'' for random drug testing. The ``violation rate'' for random 
alcohol tests means the number of covered employees found during random 
tests given under 14 CFR part 121, appendix J to have an alcohol 
concentration of 0.04 or greater plus the number of employees who 
refused a random alcohol test, divided by the total reported number of 
employees given random alcohol tests plus the total reported number of 
employees who refused a random test. The ``positive rate'' means the 
number of positive results for random drug tests conducted under 14 CFR 
part 121, appendix I plus the number of refusals to take random drug 
tests, divided by the total number of random drug tests plus the number 
of refusals to take random drug tests. The violation rate and the 
positive rate are calculated using information required to be submitted 
to the FAA by specified aviation industry employers as part of an FAA 
Management Information System (MIS) and form the basis for maintaining 
or adjusting the minimum annual percentage rates for random alcohol and 
drug testing as indicated in the following paragraphs.
    When the annual percentage rate for random alcohol testing is 25 
percent or more, the FAA Administrator may lower the rate to 10 percent 
if data received under the MIS reporting requirements for two 
consecutive calendar years indicate that the violation rate is less 
than 0.5 percent.
    When the minimum annual percentage rate for random alcohol testing 
is 50 percent, the FAA Administrator may lower the rate to 25 percent 
if data received under the MIS reporting requirements for two 
consecutive calendar years indicate that the violation rate is less 
than 1.0 percent but equal to or greater than 0.5 percent.
    When the minimum annual percentage rate for random alcohol testing 
is 10 percent, and the data received under the MIS reporting 
requirements for that calendar year indicate that the violation rate is 
equal to or greater than 0.5 percent but less than 1.0 percent, the FAA 
Administrator must increase the minimum annual percentage rate for 
random alcohol testing to 25 percent.
    When the minimum annual percentage rate for random alcohol testing 
is 25 percent or less, and the data received under the MIS reporting 
requirements for that calendar year indicate that the violation rate is 
equal to or greater than 1.0 percent, the FAA Administrator must 
increase the minimum annual percentage rate for random alcohol testing 
to 50 percent.
    When the minimum annual percentage rate for random drug testing is 
50 percent, the FAA Administrator may lower the rate to 25 percent if 
data received under the MIS reporting requirements for two consecutive 
calendar years indicate that the positive rate is less than 1.0 
percent.
    When the minimum annual percentage rate for random drug testing is 
25 percent, and the data received under the MIS reporting requirements 
for any calendar year indicate that the reported positive rate is equal 
to or greater than 1.0 percent, the Administrator will increase the 
minimum annual percentage rate for random drug testing to 50 percent.
    There is a one year lag in the adjustment in the minimum annual 
percentage rates for random drug and alcohol testing because MIS data 
for a given calendar year is not reported to the FAA until the 
following calendar year. For example, MIS data for 1998 is not reported 
to the FAA until March 15, 1999, and any rate adjustments resulting 
from the 1998 data are not effective until January 1, 2000, following 
publication by the FAA of a notice in the Federal Register.
    The minimum annual percentage rate for random alcohol testing was 
10 percent for calendar year 2000. In this notice, the FAA announces 
that it has determined that the violation rate for calendar year 1999 
is less than one percent positive, at approximately 0.42 percent. Since 
the data received for that calendar year do not indicate that the 
violation rate is equal to or greater than 0.5 percent but less than 
1.0 percent, the minimum annual percentage rate for random alcohol 
testing for aviation industry employers for calendar year 2001 will 
remain at 10 percent.
    The minimum annual percentage rate for random drug testing was 25 
percent in calendar year 2000. Therefore, the FAA is also announcing 
that it has determined that the positive rate for calendar year 1999 is 
less than 1 percent, at approximately 0.65 percent, and that the 
minimum annual percentage rate for random drug testing for aviation 
industry employers for calendar year 2001 will remain at 25 percent.

    Issued in Washington, DC on November 29, 2000.
Jon L. Jordan,
Federal Air Surgeon.
[FR Doc. 00-30922 Filed 11-30-00; 3:24 pm]
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