Recently, the U.S. Congress approved, and President Obama signed into law, an amendment to comprehensive highway funding legislation that would authorize U.S. motor carriers to begin testing the hair of commercial truck drivers for illegal drugs (in lieu of urine testing) in certain circumstances sometime within the next 12 months or so.
Section 5402 of H.R. 22, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, amends existing federal law to allow the use of hair testing as an alternative to urine testing to detect drug use by commercial motor vehicle operators. Covered employers will be able to begin pre-employment hair testing once the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issues revised drug testing guidelines, anticipated before the end of this year.
Although the amendment delays implementation of hair testing for one year, trucking industry representatives expressed appreciation that Congress has finally acted on an industry priority. For example, American Trucking Association (ATA) President Bill Graves noted in a statement to ATA members that “[t]his is something that a number of carriers have wanted to see happen.”
Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.