Trucking is caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to marijuana, between public opinion and increasingly liberal state laws on cannabis use on one hand, and a federal government that classifies marijuana as one of the most dangerous illegal drugs on the other.
President Trump signed into law on Oct. 24 legislation that contains provisions on hair testing for illegal drug use that have been long sought by trucking lobbies.
With more and more states allowing for either medicinal and recreational marijuana sales, many fleets are beginning to show concern about whether or not they need to keep a closer eye on their drivers.
American Trucking Associations has praised Senate-passed legislation that, in its current form, includes provisions to create guidelines for drug hair testing.
The Alliance for Driver Safety & Security, also known as the Trucking Alliance, announced it will push for congressional passage of a new drug testing law to require anyone who applies for a safety-sensitive job in the trucking industry to verify no opioid addiction or illegal drug use for at least 30 days prior to employment.
The American Transportation Research Institute's top research priorities for 2018 include smart cities, autonomous vehicles, and cannabis intoxication testing procedures, among others.
In a letter, the Canadian Trucking Alliance told Health Canada, the country’s national system of healthcare, that it should not make exceptions for commercial truck drivers using medicinal marijuana while on the job.
The Department of Transportation plans to add four prescription opioids – hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxymorphone and oxycodone – to the existing DOT drug-testing panel for screening truck drivers and other "safety-sensitive" transportation workers. This final rule is to take effect on Jan. 1.
The American Trucking Associations is continuing its push to allow hair-testing to be used in lieu of urinalysis to detect drug use by CDL driver applicants.
As Joe DeLorenzo, director of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance, sees it, there are positive reasons why all motor carriers need to be conscious of the upcoming electronic logging device mandate deadline of December 18, 2017.