Keep Your Pants On, For Now

The Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy (ODAPC) announced that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued its mandate in the BNSF Railway Company v. Department of Transportation case on July 1, 2009. The mandate finalizes the court’s decision and lifts its earlier stay on the compulsory direct observation drug testing rules applicable to return-to-duty and follow-up testing of safety-sensitive employees.

The DOT will eventually issue a final rule in the Federal Register providing a start date for mandatory direct observation collections for all follow-up and return-to-duty tests. Until then, direct observation for these tests remains an employer’s option. Keep in mind that the final rule is not in effect until ODAPC publishes it in the Federal Register and the effective date occurs. ARSA will notify its members when the rule is published and the date is set.