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Substance testing for commercial drivers

On Behalf of | Jun 24, 2018 | Uncategorized

People who live and work in South Carolina know that the state has some very tough laws in place regarding driving a motor vehicle after consuming alcohol. Most of the laws people are aware of pertain to individuals driving with standard licenses. When it comes to truckers and others with commercial driving licenses, there is an even greater level of oversight that everyone holding a CDL in South Carolina should be aware of.

At the state level, the Department of Motor Vehicles requires that any company employing drivers with commercial driving licenses provide reporting to the state of select substance testing results or other activities. Specifically, if a driver fails a test or is believed to have in some way tampered with a test or its sample, that information must be reported. Similarly, the refusal of a driver to submit to a drug or alcohol test must be reported.

A driver might have their commercial driving privileges taken away for a disqualification period based on the information reported by an employer or a potential employer. License reinstatement may be possible after a certain period of time has lapsed and after a driver has completed a substance abuse or addiction program and paid the required fee to the DMV. Drivers who have more than two disqualifications on their record within five years will never be able to get a commercial driving license in South Carolina again.

At the federal level, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has what it calls its drug and alcohol clearinghouse. This is a database that employers must check before hiring someone for a driving job. Any violations related to substances would be findable in this database.