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Introduction....
The Federal Transit
Administration (FTA) published its final rules on prohibited drug use
(49 CFR Part 653) and the prevention of alcohol misuse (49 CFR Part 654)
on February 15, 1994. Shortly thereafter, the FTA published the
Implementation Guidelines for Drug and Alcohol Regulations in Mass
Transit to provide a comprehensive overview of the regulations.
Since the Guidelines were published there have
been numerous amendments, interpretations, and clarifications to the
Drug and Alcohol testing procedures and program requirements.
This publication is being provided to update the
Guidelines and inform your transit system of all of these changes.
This Update is the eighth in a series.
Inside....
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FTA Provides Checklists
In an effort to assist
recipients/sub-recipients and their contractors and vendors in their
program monitoring and assessment activities, FTA will be providing
checklists on each of the major components of the testing program. The
checklists will be published in this and subsequent issues of the
Updates. The checklists can be used as a self-assessment tool to
identify incorrect or omitted components of a program or as an oversight
tool to assess compliance. A checklist for policies is provided on pages
3 and 4 of this Update.
State Oversight
The regulations (49 CFR Parts 653.83
and 654.83) require that the states certify compliance with the FTA drug
and alcohol testing program on behalf of the Section 5311 and 5307
transit programs they administer. They are also required to collect
annual MIS forms from each sub-recipient and their contractors and
submit them to FTA. FTA does not specify what actions must be taken by
states to ensure sub-recipients’ compliance, but states are encouraged
to develop an oversight program that will provide a reasonable
confidence level that their sub-recipients are in compliance before they
certify compliance. Successful oversight activities have included policy
reviews, on-going training, technical assistance, and compliance
checklists.
Among the most informative tools is the policy review.
Several states evaluate policies of each of their sub-recipients to
ensure that every system has a policy in place and to assess the policy
content for compliance. Some states have reviewed the policies using a
checklist similar to the one provided in this Update. The states that
have performed those reviews have found them to be very useful because
they often reveal the nature and extent of a sub-recipient’s compliance
problems.
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Example of a Proactive State Oversight
Program
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Policy Reviews
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On-going Training and
Information Dissemination
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Compliance Checklist with
Documentation
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On-going Technical
Assistance
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Information sharing and
training is another effective oversight tool. Most states have provided
some level of training for their subrecipients. A few states have
supplemented their initial training by providing refresher courses aimed
at informing sub-recipients of regulatory changes, new interpretations,
and ways to avoid common mistakes. Several states have also developed
resource libraries that are available to sub-recipients and have
disseminated information through newsletters, alerts, e-mails, or faxes.
Some states have developed monitoring programs that
require sub-recipients to complete comprehensive checklists and provide
documentation indicating how they complied with each regulatory
requirement. A review of the checklists enables the state to identify
problems and require the sub-recipients to take corrective actions.
Other states have included abbreviated testing program checklists into
their on-going regulatory compliance review processes.
Regardless of the methods used, each state should be
committed to the program and should take their oversight
responsibilities seriously. Oversight programs that successfully
identify problem areas, and initiate corrective actions will enhance the
integrity of each sub-recipient’s testing program, minimize compliance
issues, avoid potential legal conflicts and improve the overall
effectiveness of the program. |
