Hidden Supply Chain Logjams: Weed Smoking Truck Drivers, Says DOT

According to federal data provided by the US Department of Transportation (DOT), a spiking number of commercial truck drivers are being relieved of duty following positive drug screens for marijuana.

The news reported by the Kansas NBC affiliate KSNW said that over 10,000 drivers tested positive for cannabis exposure between January 1 and April 1, 2022.

"That figure is a 33 percent increase over the year before. NBC’s reporting also states that the DOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has doubled the frequency with which they are drug testing commercially licensed drivers," the report continued.

In addition, the FMCSA provided data that said "89,650 commercial drivers are currently on prohibited status. It has been previously reported that over half of those drug test failures were for marijuana."

What Are The Measures Taken To Fix The Truck-drivers Issue?

Under federal law, CLD “licensed drivers are not permitted to consume cannabis under any circumstances, regardless of whether marijuana use is legal where they live."

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), in a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently called on the agency to amend its marijuana-related policies

“Outmoded and unfair federal drug policies are out of step with reality and directly contribute to the trucking shortage crisis," said the letter. "Too many of the 2.8 million Americans who hold commercial driver licenses are not working because of past cannabis tests and the difficulty they face re-qualifying for duty.”

A study conducted at the state Universities of Tennessee, Arkansas and Iowa showed that U.S. recreational cannabis legalization reduced the number of heavy truck accidents by 11% in the eight states studied.

Federal Drug Testing Guidelines

The Department of Transportation has proposed changes to existing federal drug testing guidelines that would allow for the use of oral fluid testing as an alternative to urinalysis for those working in the transportation industry.

“Random marijuana testing in the workplace, such as pre-employment drug screening, has never been an evidence-based policy. Rather, this discriminatory practice is a holdover from the zeitgeist of the 1980s ‘war on drugs," said Paul Armentano, NORML’s deputy director.

"But times have changed; attitudes have changed, and in many places, the marijuana laws have changed. It is time for workplace policies – and federal workplace policies and guidelines in particular – to adapt to this new reality and to cease punishing employees for activities they engage in during their off-hours that pose no workplace safety threat,” Armentano continued.

It is noteworthy that NORML called for the use of performance testing technology rather than drug screening technology to determine if someone may be impaired at work.
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