Employment Screening Services

Background Screening and Drug Testing Solutions

Important Notice to FMCSA Employers

November 3, 2020 by Katie Robinson

Important Notice to FMCSA Employers

by

FMCSA Transportation Clearinghouse

FMCSA Clearinghouse Annual Queries

As a reminder, employers regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) must conduct Annual Queries through the FMCSA Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse for all employee-drivers. The first round of Annual Queries for employees hired before January 6, 2020, must be completed on or before January 5, 2021.

Information About Annual Queries:

  • Annual Queries can be either Full, Limited, or Limited + Full Queries.
  • If a Limited Query returns preliminary results, you must conduct a Full Query and receive results within 24 hours.  If you cannot complete a Full Query within 24 hours, you will be required to remove the driver from any safety-sensitive position until you receive the Full Query results.
  • ESS recommends choosing the Limited + Full Query option to conduct your Annual Queries.  With this option, preliminary results will automatically trigger a Full Query and significantly speed up the process.

Remember:  Driver violations occurring before January 6, 2020, will NOT be captured in the Clearinghouse. Therefore, you must conduct both Clearinghouse queries and normal offline pre-employment investigations in order to comply with DOT regulations.  This dual process must continue until the Clearinghouse database is fully operational in January 2023.  

For questions or more information or help with effectively managing your DOT, background screening, or drug testing programs, please email solutions@es2.com,  or visit the ESS DOT Resource Center.

 

This publication is provided only for educational purposes; it should not be relied upon as legal advice, and it should not be used, in whole or in part, as a basis for establishing employment practices or policies, nor should it be used for resolving disputes or managing risk. Every reader’s circumstances are unique and legal advice should be obtained only from a lawyer with whom the reader has established an attorney-client relationship. Copyright 2020 ©Employment Screening Services, Inc. All material contained within this publication is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced without the express written consent of ESS

DOT Truck blue and green 200x200-01

About Katie Robinson

Katie Robinson, Corporate Counsel for ESS and GHRR, represents the companies in a broad range of legal matters, such as contract negotiations and internal compliance with federal and state regulatory processes, with a special focus in employment law. Katie graduated from the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University and joined ESS in 2018.