[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 241 (Tuesday, December 15, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 81265-81267]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-27521]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket No. FRA-2001-11213, Notice No. 25]


Drug and Alcohol Testing: Determination of Minimum Random Testing 
Rates for 2021

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notification of determination.

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SUMMARY: This notification of determination announces FRA's minimum 
annual random drug and minimum annual random alcohol testing rates for 
covered service and maintenance-of-way (MOW) employees for calendar 
year 2021.

DATES: This determination takes effect December 15, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gerald Powers, FRA Drug and Alcohol 
Program Manager, by email: gerald.powers@dot.gov or by telephone: 202-
493-6313; or Sam Noe, FRA Drug and Alcohol Program Specialist, by 
email: sam.noe@dot.gov or by telephone: 615-719-2951.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FRA is announcing the 2021 minimum annual 
random drug and alcohol testing rates for covered service and MOW 
employees. For calendar year 2021, the minimum annual random testing 
rates for covered service employees will continue to be 25 percent for 
drugs and 10 percent for alcohol, while the minimum annual random 
testing rates for MOW employees will continue to be 50 percent for 
drugs and will be lowered to 10 percent for alcohol. Because these 
rates represent minimums, railroads and contractors may conduct FRA 
random testing at higher rates.

Discussion

    To set its minimum annual random testing rates for each year, FRA 
examines the last two complete calendar years of railroad industry drug 
and alcohol program data submitted to its Management Information System 
(MIS). FRA has also, however, reserved the right to consider factors 
other than MIS-reported data before deciding whether to lower annual 
minimum random testing rates. See 63 FR 71789 (Dec. 30, 1998).

Random Testing Rates for Covered Service Employees

    The rail industry's random drug testing positive rate for covered 
service employees (employees subject to the Federal hours of service 
laws and regulations) remained below 1.0 percent for 2018 and 2019. The 
Administrator has therefore determined the minimum annual random drug 
testing rate for the period January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2021, 
will remain at 25 percent for covered service employees. The industry-
wide random alcohol testing violation rate for covered service 
employees remained below 0.5 percent for 2018 and 2019. Therefore, the 
Administrator has determined the minimum random alcohol testing rate 
will remain at 10 percent for covered service employees for the period 
January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2021.

Random Testing Rates for MOW Employees

    MOW employees became subject to FRA random drug and alcohol testing 
in June 2017. See 81 FR 37894 (June 10, 2016). FRA now has MIS data for 
two full consecutive years of the industry-wide performance rates for 
MOW employees, 2018 and 2019. While FRA may lower the minimum random 
drug testing rate to 25 percent whenever the industry-wide random drug 
positive rate is less than 1.0 percent for two consecutive calendar 
years while testing at the 50 percent rate, FRA has reserved the right 
to consider other factors before deciding whether to lower annual 
minimum random testing rates. See 63 FR 71789 (Dec. 30, 1998).
    As illustrated in the figures in the appendix below, in contrast to 
the drug testing positive rate for covered service employees that 
remained substantially below 1.0 percent for 2018 and 2019, the random 
drug testing positive rate for MOW employees is not only trending 
upwards, but also approaching the 1.0 percent positive rate threshold 
at which point the Administrator will raise the drug testing rate under 
49 CFR 219.625(d)(2). Specifically, the industry-wide random drug 
testing violation rate for MOW employees increased from 0.69 percent in 
2018 to 0.8 percent in 2019, and MOW employees continue to have a 
higher positive testing rate than covered service employees.\1\ The 
Administrator further notes that MOW employees who were performing 
duties for a railroad before June 12, 2017, were exempted from the pre-
employment drug testing requirement. See 49 CFR 219.501(e). As such, 
some MOW employees may remain who have never been subject to FRA drug 
testing because they have not yet been randomly selected.
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    \1\ While the drug testing positive rate for covered service 
employees also increased from 0.50 percent in 2018 to 0.57 percent 
in 2019, a concerning trend upwards, 0.57 percent is far below the 
0.80 positive rate for MOW employees and remains substantially below 
the 1.0 percent threshold for raising rates.
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    Taking these factors into consideration, the Administrator finds it 
is currently not in the interest of railroad safety to lower the random 
drug testing rate for MOW employees. Therefore, for the period January 
1, 2021, through December 31, 2021, the Administrator has determined 
that the minimum annual random drug testing rate will continue to be 50 
percent for MOW employees.
    Because the random alcohol testing violation rate for MOW employees 
remained substantially below 0.5 percent for 2018 and 2019, and has 
been trending downwards, the Administrator has determined that the 
minimum annual random alcohol testing rate will be lowered to 10 
percent for MOW employees for the period January 1, 2021, through 
December 31, 2021.
BILLING CODE 4810-06-P

Appendix

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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN15DE20.010


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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN15DE20.011


    Issued in Washington, DC
Quintin C. Kendall,
Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2020-27521 Filed 12-14-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-C


