8414.5 Alcohol and Drug Testing of Drivers Policy and Regulation

ICHABOD CRANE 8414.5

ALCOHOL AND DRUG TESTING OF DRIVERS 

The Board of Education recognizes the dangers inherent in alcohol and controlled substance use by employees especially those in safety-sensitive positions. To ensure the safety of its students, the Board requires alcohol and controlled substance testing of certain “drivers” operators of “other school buses,” and any other employee who is subject to such testing, in accordance with and as set forth in applicable federal and state requirements.

Definitions
1. “Driver” includes any person who operates a commercial motor vehicle. This includes, but is not limited to: Full time, regularly employed drivers; casual, intermittent or occasional drivers; leased drivers and independent owner-operator contractors.
2. “Other school buses” include those covered by applicable federal regulations (see list below) and any other motor vehicle either owned by the district or by a private company, operated to transport students, children of students, teachers, and other supervisory persons to or from school or school activities.

Testing Responsibilities

Consistent with federal regulations, the district will directly, by contract, or through a consortium, implement and conduct a program to provide alcohol and controlled substance testing of employees who operate a commercial motor vehicle, perform in a safety-sensitive position, and are required to hold a commercial driver’s license. Employees holding such positions include:
1. drivers of vehicles designed to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver;

2. drivers of commercial motor vehicles whose manufacturer’s rating is 26,001 lbs. or more; or

3. any other employee who may drive or service a listed vehicle (e.g. a mechanic who performs test drives, repairs, inspects, or loads or unloads a vehicle listed in 1 or 2 above).

Controlled substance and alcohol tests will be conducted for operators of all “other school buses” consistent with the procedures applicable to the implementation of federal regulations. Volunteers who drive a bus with passengers fewer than 30 days per year are not subject to such testing.

Generally, the required testing will be conducted at or prior to the time of employment, and randomly throughout the school year. However, drivers are subject to additional testing under federal regulations when a supervisor has a reasonable suspicion that an employee has engaged in prohibited alcohol or controlled substance use; after certain accidents; prior to return to duty when the employee has been found to violate district policy and federal regulations; and after the employee’s return to duty.

Driving Prohibition

In accordance with federal and state law, drivers may not drive if they:
1. possess, consume or are reasonably believed to possess or have consumed alcohol or a controlled substance, while on duty;
2. use or are under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance within six hours or less before duty;
3. have an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or higher, or tests positive for a controlled substance; or
4. refuses to take a required alcohol or controlled substance test.

Also, no driver is permitted to use alcohol after being involved in an accident in which there was a fatality or in which the bus driver was cited for a moving violation and a vehicle was towed from the scene or an injury was treated away from the scene until they have been tested or 8 hours have passed, whichever occurs first.

Enforcement of Driving Prohibitions

The school district will not require or permit drivers of vehicles listed above, as well as operators of all “other school buses” defined above, to be on duty or operate a listed vehicle or other school bus, if it appears that they have consumed a drug/controlled substance (except those lawfully prescribed) or alcohol within the preceding eight hours. This will be based on the person’s general appearance, conduct, or other substantiating evidence. Those who maintain, repair, or garage listed vehicles or school buses that involves incidental driving without passengers, are exempt from this requirement, but are still prohibited from consuming controlled substances and alcohol within six hours of going on duty.

Response to Positive Testing Results

Any driver who is tested and found to have an alcohol concentration of at least 0.02, but less than 0.04, will be removed from the position until their next regularly scheduled duty period, but not less than 24 hours following administration of the test. Any driver found to have violated this requirement may be disciplined in accordance with the provisions of the applicable collective bargaining agreement, district policy, and/or law. Operators of “other school buses” subject to random testing pursuant to New York Law will be subject to the same consequences based upon an alcohol concentration of at least 0.02 but less than 0.04 as drivers listed above.

If a driver has an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater, or has engaged in prohibited alcohol or controlled substance use, they will be removed from driving duties, and referred to a substance abuse professional. The driver may be required to complete a treatment program and/or be disciplined pursuant to district policy and/or collective bargaining agreement. No driver who has abused controlled substances and/or alcohol may return to duty unless they have successfully passed a required return to duty test. Thereafter, the driver will be subject to follow-up testing. Operators of “other school buses” subject to random testing pursuant to New York Law will be subject to the same consequences based upon an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater or a positive drug test as drivers listed above.

Re-testing

Should the district receive a dilute test result in which the creatinine concentration is greater than 5mg/dL in the case of any pre-employment, return-to-duty, follow-up, reasonable suspicion, or random test, it is the policy of the district that the individual will be re-tested and that re-test will become the test of record.

Federal Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse Queries and Reporting

In addition to the required testing, for employees covered under federal law, the district will also conduct required pre-employment and annual queries of the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse for drug and alcohol violations. The district will conduct full queries when limited query results show a record of violations. The district will also report the required information to the Clearinghouse regarding test results and drug and alcohol use.

Policy Distribution

The Superintendent of Schools will ensure that a copy of this policy, the district’s policy on misuse of alcohol and use of controlled substances, information on alcohol and drug abuse and treatment resources and any other information prescribed by federal regulations is provided to all drivers and operators of “other school buses” prior to the initiation of the testing program and to each driver or operators of “other school buses” subsequently hired or transferred to a position subject to testing.

Cross-ref: 9230 Drug-Free Workplace

Ref: Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991, 49 U.S.C. §§31136; 31306 49 U.S.C. §521(b)
49 CFR Part 391 (Qualifications/Disqualifications)
49 CFR Part 382 (Drug and Alcohol Testing Requirements)
49 CFR Part 40 (Testing Procedures)
49 CFR §395.2 (On-duty time defined)
Vehicle and Traffic Law §§509-g; 509-l; 1192; 1193
Will v. Frontier CSD Bd. of Educ., 97 N.Y.2d 690 (2002)

Effective Date: July 15, 2025

ICHABOD CRANE 8414.5-R

ALCOHOL AND DRUG-TESTING OF DRIVERS REGULATION 

Any employee who operates a commercial motor vehicle, or other “school bus” or is in a safety-sensitive function as described below will be subject to alcohol and controlled substance testing in accordance with this regulation and applicable federal regulations and state law. An employee having any questions concerning the district’s policy or regulation, state law or the federal regulations are to contact the Superintendent of Schools. 

Any treatment, rehabilitation program or discipline will be provided in accordance with district policy and/or collective bargaining agreements.

Definitions

  • Employees Covered Under Federal Law

Employees covered under federal law include district employees who operate a commercial motor vehicle, perform in a related safety-sensitive position, and are required to obtain a commercial driver’s license. Such employees include: 

  1. drivers of vehicles designed to transport 16 or more passengers, including the driver;
  2. drivers of commercial motor vehicles whose manufacturer’s rating is 26,001 lbs. or more; or 
  3. any other employee who may drive or service a listed vehicle (e.g., a mechanic who performs test drives, repairs, inspects or loads or unloads a listed vehicle). 

Such employees include, but are not limited to full time, regularly employed drivers; casual, intermittent or occasional drivers; leased drivers and independent, owner-operator contractors who are either directly employed or under lease to an employer or who operate a commercial motor vehicle at the direction or with the consent of the district.

Employees Covered Under State Law 

Operators of “other school buses” are subject to testing as described in section III below. “Other school buses” include both those covered by applicable federal regulations as stated above, and any other motor vehicle either owned by the district or by a private company, operated to transport students, children of students, teachers, and other supervisory persons to or from school or school activities. 

Certain specified employees will not be considered operators of “other school buses.” They include: 

  1. Volunteers who drive a school bus with passengers fewer than 30 days per year; and 
  2. Employees engaged in the maintenance, repair or garaging of buses, who in the course of their duties must incidentally drive a vehicle not covered under federal law without passengers.

Safety Sensitive Function 

A driver is performing a safety-sensitive function when: 

  1. waiting to be dispatched, unless the driver has been relieved from duty;
  2. inspecting, servicing or conditioning any commercial motor vehicle; 
  3. driving a commercial motor vehicle; 
  4. attending a vehicle being loaded or unloaded; 
  5. performing the driver requirements of the federal regulations pertaining to accidents; and
  6. attending to a disabled vehicle. 

Driver Prohibitions and Consequences 

Employees covered under federal law are required to be in compliance with district policy and regulation at the following times: 

  1. when performing any on-duty safety-sensitive functions, including all time from the time a driver begins to work or is required to be in readiness to work until the time the driver is relieved from work and all responsibility; and 
  2. during all time spent providing a breath sample, saliva sample or urine specimen and travel time to and from the collection site in order to comply with random, reasonable suspicion, post-accident, return-to-duty or follow-up testing. 

Employees covered under both federal and state law are prohibited from driving a listed vehicle or performing other safety-sensitive duties if the employee: 

  1. possesses, consumes or is reasonably believed to possess or have consumed alcohol or a controlled substance, while on duty; 
  2. has consumed or is under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance within six hours before duty; 
  3. has an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or higher, or tests positive for controlled substances; or 
  4. refuses to take a required alcohol or controlled substance test. Refusal to submit shall will mean the failure to provide adequate breath, saliva/oral fluid or urine without a valid medical explanation or to engage in conduct that clearly obstructs the testing process, such as a failure to arrive for the drug testing or failure to sign the alcohol testing form prior to specimen collection. 

In addition, An employee covered under federal law is prohibited from consuming alcohol within eight hours after being involved in an accident, or before undergoing a post-accident test, if such a test is required. Illegal drug use by drivers is prohibited on or off duty. 

Drivers who violated the above prohibitions will be subject to the following enforcement actions:

  1. Employees covered under federal law will be removed from their safety-sensitive functions if they violate the district’s policy or federal regulations pertaining to the possession or consumption of alcohol or controlled substances. 
  2. The Supervisor of Transportation or designee will not require or permit employees covered under state law to be on duty or operate a listed vehicle or other school bus, if it appears that they have consumed a drug/controlled substance (except those lawfully prescribed) or alcohol within the preceding eight hours. This will be based on the person’s general appearance, conduct, or other substantiating evidence. Those who maintain, repair, or garage listed vehicles or school buses that involves incidental driving without passengers, are exempt from this requirement, but are still prohibited from consuming controlled substances and alcohol within six hours of going on duty. 
  3. Covered employees who test 0.02 or greater but less than 0.04 will be removed from driving and other safety-sensitive duties until the start of their next regularly scheduled duty period, but not less than 24 hours following administration of the test. 
  4. In the event that an any covered employee has a breath alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater, has tested positive for a controlled substance or has refused to take a test, they will, in addition to immediate removal from driving and any other safety-related duties, not be returned to duty until they have: 
  • been evaluated by a substance abuse professional; 
  • complied with any treatment recommendations; and 
  • received a satisfactory result from a return to duty test. 
  1. Upon return to duty, the employee will be subject to follow-up testing. 

While New York Law permits the use of medical and adult-use cannabis, marijuana is still a controlled substance under federal law still prohibits its use and its use is still prohibited and tested for in covered employees. Any driver tested under the federal regulations, who tests positive for marijuana, even if such use is based upon a lawful certification or lawful use under state law, will be found to have violated the federal regulations (DOT Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance, Medical Marijuana Notice (Oct. 2009) at:  https://www.transportation.gov/odapc/medical-marijuana-notice). 

Additionally, employees are cautioned that while cannabidiol (CBD) is not tested for under federal regulations, CBD products may contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and CBD use may result in a positive test for marijuana if it contains more than 0.3% of THC. There is no FDA oversight to ensure that CBD products are accurately labeled.  CBD use is not recognized as a legitimate medical explanation for a positive THC result.

Types of Testing 

The Superintendent of Schools and the Director of Transportation will ensure that the following alcohol and drug tests are conducted and that any employee who is required to take such a test is notified prior to the test that it is required pursuant to federal regulations. Notice will also be given in the case of pre-employment alcohol testing, that such a test is required by state law. 

  • Pre-employment: Controlled substance and alcohol tests will be conducted before all applicants are hired or after an offer to hire, but before actually performing safety-sensitive functions for the first time. These tests will also be given when employees covered by transfer to a safety-sensitive function. 
  • Post-accident: Alcohol and controlled substance tests will be conducted if a driver is involved in an accident in which: 
    • there has been a fatality;OR
    • the driver has received a citation for a moving violation in connection with the accident AND EITHER
    • there is an injury treated away from the scene of the accident; or 
    • there is a disabled vehicle towed from the scene. 
  • Reasonable Suspicion: Alcohol and controlled substance tests will be conducted when the Transportation Supervisor or other school official who has completed the minimum two hours of training has a reasonable suspicion that the driver covered under federal law has violated district policy and regulation. A “reasonable suspicion” must be based on specific, contemporaneous, articulable observations concerning the driver’s behavior, appearance, speech or body odors that are characteristic of controlled substance or alcohol misuse. Alcohol tests can only be done just before, during or just after the employee covered under federal law drives a listed vehicle or performs other safety-sensitive duties. The supervisor who makes the determination of reasonable suspicion cannot do the testing.  
  • Random Testing: For employees covered under federal law, random alcohol tests will be conducted annually at a minimum rate established annually by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Random alcohol tests must be conducted just before, during or just after the employee drives a listed vehicle or performs other safety-sensitive duties.For employees covered under federal law, random controlled substance tests will be conducted annually at a minimum rate established annually by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Random controlled substance tests may be conducted at any time. Random alcohol and controlled substance tests must be unannounced and spread reasonably throughout the calendar year. New York law requires employees covered by state law to be tested in conformance with federal regulations 49 CFR Part 382. Although federal regulations permit employers to perform random testing beyond what they require, a separate pool must be maintained for those employees covered by state law who do not meet federal requirements. The separate pool for these employees will be subject to testing at the same minimum rate annually established for drivers subject to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations.
  • Return-to-Duty Testing: Any covered employee who refused to take a test or has engaged in prohibited alcohol and controlled substance use, except for alcohol concentration of between 0.02 and 0.04, is required to take an alcohol or controlled substance test and achieve a satisfactory result before returning to duty in the safety-sensitive position. If removal was due to alcohol use, a satisfactory result will be less than 0.02 alcohol concentration. If removal was due to controlled substance use, a satisfactory result will be one that it is verified as negative. The test will not be administered until the employee has been evaluated by a substance abuse professional and has complied with any treatment recommendations. 
  • Follow-Up Testing: After any covered employee who was found to violate the district’s policy against alcohol and controlled substance use returns to duty, they will be subject to at least six unannounced tests in the first 12 months following the employee’s return to duty. Follow-up testing may be extended for up to 60 months from the date of the employee’s return to duty. Follow-up alcohol testing may only be conducted before, during or after the driver has performed his or her driving duties. 

Testing Procedures

Alcohol Testing Procedures 

Alcohol testing will be conducted with evidential breath testing (EBT) devices approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. An approved non-evidential screening device (on breath, blood or saliva) may be used to perform screening tests but not for confirmation alcohol tests. The employee and the Breath Alcohol Technician conducting the test must complete the alcohol testing form to ensure that the results are properly recorded. 

  1. Two breath tests are required to determine if a person has a prohibited alcohol concentration. A screening test is conducted first. Any result less than 0.02 alcohol concentration is considered a “negative” test. 
  2. If the alcohol concentration is 0.02 or greater, a second or confirmation test must be conducted. The confirmation test must be conducted using an EBT that meets the requirements of federal regulations. 
  3. If the confirmation test results indicate an alcohol concentration from 0.02 to 0.03999, the employee will be restricted from duty for at least 24 hours from the time of the test.
  4. If the confirmation test results indicate an alcohol concentration equal to or greater than 0.04, the employee will be removed from all safety-sensitive duties and no return to duty will be permitted until the employee has successfully passed required return-to-duty tests.  The employee must also be reviewed by a Substance Abuse Professional and comply with their recommendations. Follow-up tests will also be required. 
  5. For post-accident testing, the results of breath or blood tests conducted by law enforcement officials will be accepted as long as the testing conforms with federal and state requirements for alcohol testing and the results are made available to the district.

All testing procedures will conform to the requirements outlined in federal regulations (49 CFR Part 40) for ensuring the accuracy, reliability and confidentiality of test results. These procedures include training and proficiency requirements for Breath Alcohol Technicians, quality assurance plans for the EBT devices including calibration, requirements for suitable test location, and protection of employee test records.  

Drug Testing Procedures 

The employee must provide a urine or oral fluid specimen at a collection site that meets federal requirements which will be analyzed at a laboratory certified and monitored by the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Oral fluid will be used for direct observation if a person of the same gender is not available to do the observation, or for nonbinary or transgender individuals. 

  • Regulations require that each specimen be divided into one “primary” specimen and one “split” specimen. 
  • All specimens are analyzed for the following drugs:
    • Marijuana (metabolites)
    • Cocaine metabolites
    • Amphetamines (including methamphetamines, MDA and MDMA) 
    • Opioids (including natural opiates such as codeine, morphine, heroin, and semi-synthetic opioids such as hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxycodone, and oxymorphone) 
    • Phencyclidine (PCP) 
  • If the primary specimen confirms the presence of one or more of these drugs, the employee has 72 hours to request that the split specimen be sent to another certified lab for analysis. [Note: The employee must be removed from driving duties at this time pursuant to federal regulations, the driver’s removal cannot await the result of split sample.] 
  • All drug test results will be reviewed and interpreted by a physician (also called a Medical Review Officer) before they are reported to the district. 
  • If the laboratory reports a positive result to the Medical Review Officer (MRO), the MRO will interview the employee to determine if there is an alternative medical explanation for the drugs found in the employee’s specimen. If the employee provides appropriate documentation and the MRO determines that it is legitimate medical use of a prohibited drug, the drug test result is reported as negative. 
  • If the MRO reports a positive drug result, the employee must be evaluated by a substance abuse professional and follow their recommendations prior to taking a return-to-duty test.  Follow-up testing is also required. 
  • For post-accident testing, the results of drug tests conducted by law enforcement officials will be accepted as long as the testing conforms with federal and state requirements for controlled substance testing and the results are made available to the district. 

All controlled substance testing will comply with the requirements of the federal regulations (49 CFR Part 40) including procedures for the proper identification, security and custody of the sample, use of certified laboratories, assurance that all drug test results are reviewed and interpreted by a physician, and ensuring confidentiality of employee test records. 

Dilute Specimen Testing 

If the district receives a drug test result which is negative but dilute and the creatinine concentration is greater than 5mg/dl, the district will require a re-test to be conducted in each of the following cases: 

  • Pre-employment tests 
  • Return-to-duty tests 
  • Follow-up tests 
  • Reasonable suspicion tests 
  • Random tests 

The result of the re-test will become the test of record. If the employee refuses to take the re-test it will be considered the same as a positive test result. 

Training 

The Supervisor of Transportation and every other person designated to determine whether reasonable suspicion exists to require an employee covered by federal law to undergo reasonable suspicion testing must receive at least one hour of training on alcohol misuse and at least one additional hour of training on controlled substance use which they will use in making their determinations. 

Federal Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse Queries 

The district will conduct queries of the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse for all employees covered under federal law: (1) full queries to check if prospective employees are prohibited from performing safety-sensitive functions, such as operating school buses, due to unresolved drug and alcohol program violations, and (2) limited queries annually (once in a 365-day period), for all employees subject to state and federal drug and alcohol testing. The district may conduct queries at other times as needed. 

All queries require driver consent. The district will request employee consent to conduct limited queries of the Clearinghouse. If a limited query result shows that a record is found in the Clearinghouse, the district will request the driver’s consent for a full query. 

Full query results will show if a driver is prohibited or not prohibited from performing safety-sensitive functions. If a query shows a violation, the district must verify that the driver has completed the Substance Abuse Professional’s return to duty process before allowing the employee to perform any safety-sensitive function. In some cases, when hiring, the district may inherit an ongoing follow-up testing process.

Recordkeeping and Reporting 

The Transportation Supervisor will ensure that alcohol and drug testing records are maintained pursuant to applicable regulation and are available, if requested, for submission to the federal government or any State or local officials with regulatory authority over the employer or any of its drivers. 

The following personal information must be reported to the Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse for employees subject to DOT testing: 

  • a verified positive, adulterated or substituted drug test result; 
  • an alcohol confirmation tests with a concentration of 0.04 or higher;
  • a refusal to submit to any test required by the regulations; 
  • An employer’s report of actual knowledge of on duty alcohol use, pre-duty alcohol use, alcohol use following an accident, and controlled substance use; 
  • A substance abuse professional’s report of the successful completion of the return-to-duty process; 
  • A negative return-to-duty test; and 
  • An employer report of completion of follow-up testing. 

Required Notification 

Every covered employee will receive information about the signs, symptoms, and effects of alcohol misuse and controlled substance use as well as a copy of the district’s policy and procedures, the consequences of testing positive and who to contact within the district to seek further information and/or assistance. 

Each covered employee is required to sign a statement certifying that they have received this information. The district will maintain the original signed certification until the employee’s employment is discontinued. The district will provide a copy of the certification to the covered employee upon request. 

Penalties 

Any treatment, rehabilitation program or discipline will be provided in accordance with applicable law and regulations, district policy and/or collective bargaining agreements. 

Any employer or driver who violates the requirements of the federal regulations of the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991 may be subject to civil penalties. 

In addition, in accordance with New York State law, a driver convicted of driving a listed vehicle with one or more student passengers while impaired by the use of drugs or alcohol will have their license revoked for one year and is subject to fines ranging from $500 to $5,000 and/or imprisonment. Any driver convicted more than once in 10 years for such crimes will have their license revoked for three years and is subject to a fine of $1,000 to $5,000 and/or imprisonment. 

Effective Date: July 15, 2025

 

ICHABOD CRANE 8414.5-E1

ALCOHOL AND DRUG TESTING EXHIBIT 

General Consent for Limited Queries of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse 

I, __________________________________(Driver Name), hereby provide consent to the Ichabod Crane School District (“the District”) to conduct a limited query of the FMCSA Commercial Driver’s License Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse (Clearinghouse) to determine whether drug or alcohol violation information about me exists in the Clearinghouse. 

I understand that if the limited query conducted by the District indicates that drug or alcohol violation information about me exists in the Clearinghouse, FMCSA will not disclose that information to the District without first obtaining additional specific consent from me. 

I further understand that if I refuse to provide consent for the District to conduct a limited query of the Clearinghouse, the District must prohibit me from performing safety-sensitive functions, including driving a commercial motor vehicle, as required by FMCSA’s drug and alcohol program regulations. 

_______________________________________ 
Employee Name 

_______________________________________ 
Employee Signature 

_______________________________________ 
Date 

Effective Date: July 15, 2025