The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced new clearinghouse requirements for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). When the changes take effect on Jan. 6, 2023, regulated motor carriers will no longer have to manually reach out to previous employers for drug-and-alcohol-related information about prospective drivers.
The New FMCSA Clearinghouse Regulation
To make the hiring process less tedious for transportation companies, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has changed a regulation regarding background checks. As of Jan. 6, 2023, regulated motor carriers will no longer have to manually reach out to previous employers for drug-and-alcohol-related information about prospective drivers – this information will now be available through the DOT Clearinghouse. This change is expected to streamline the background check process and reduce wait times for transportation companies and drivers.
What this means for trucking companies
The changes will be significant for trucking companies and other groups needing information on prospective drivers. The DOT clearinghouse has been in place for over a year, but only now has the enforcement date been announced. Now all trucking companies have to do is enter a prospective driver’s information into the clearinghouse, which will pull up any reports of drug-and-alcohol use. This should make for a more efficient process for vetting new hires. Trucking companies can request previous employers’ verification without calling each company individually.
DOT Clearinghouse data should provide accurate results as long as it is current. So far, there haven’t been any false positives identified by previous employers. For carriers who don’t want to wait until Jan. 6, 2023, they can manually request this information from their previous employers and enter them into the DOT clearinghouse manually or use an automated system like TVS. But if DOT Clearinghouse data is updated regularly, it should be just as accurate.
How to prepare for the change
The FMCSA is finally getting rid of the DOT clearinghouse for drug-and-alcohol-related information. This will make it easier for trucking companies to find out about prospective drivers. However, before the change goes into effect, you must start creating a plan to help you prepare for this adjustment.
You should do a few things to prepare yourself for these changes. The first thing you should do is invest in employee background checks. While there aren’t any definitive signs that will tell you if an individual has a problem with drugs or alcohol, there are ways of figuring it out. If someone came from an employer and had a problem, he might try to lie about his past during his interview process with your company. This information can often be found on professional databases and by contacting previous employers directly.
The benefits of the new regulation
The new regulation will save carriers and DOT time by not requiring manual data entry. The FMCSA will no longer have to manually reach out to previous employers for drug-and-alcohol-related information about prospective drivers. They can now rely on the electronic data that all regulated motor carriers submit through the DOT Clearinghouse. It is important to note that this policy change only applies to DOT-registered motor carriers operating in interstate commerce. It does not apply to intrastate operations, passenger buses over 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating, or traveling over a posted speed limit of 55 miles per hour. The DOT has also updated the process for adding Motor Carrier Employers to the DOT Clearinghouse. Motor Carrier Employers can add themselves to the DOT Clearinghouse after completing a pre-enrollment screening process and an inspection by FMCSA personnel.
Conclusion
Changes to the DOT Clearinghouse will become effective on January 6th, 2023. Regulated motor carriers will no longer have to ask previous employers for information about drugs and alcohol in order to gauge driver fitness.
