Implementation Guidelines - Federal Transit Administration - U.S. ...

projects, the employer should notify FTA
immediately. Early notification of
potentially significant litigation provides
FTA more options and opportunities to
defend its programs. Even if FTA does
not participate directly in the litigation,
FTA can provide background information
and technical assistance. Do not notify
FTA about routine personnel matters or
minor accidents, but the appropriate FTA
regional counsel or the Office of the
Chief Counsel should be notified once it
becomes clear that an FTA program or
regulation is at issue. A summary of
relevant court rulings is provided in the
Sample Documentation section of this
chapter.
Section 6. WHAT THE
REGULATIONS DO NOT
REQUIRE
The FTA regulations focus on public
safety, and therefore, they do not address
a number of concerns considered internal
affairs of transit agencies. Some of the
issues that are not included in the FTA
regulations are:
• The FTA does not require testing
of nonsafety-sensitive employees
(although you may choose to do
so under your own separate
authority).
• The FTA does not require that
you provide an Employee
Assistance Program (EAP)
(although you may and are
encouraged to do so).
• The FTA does not require a
second-chance policy or
employee rehabilitation and
reinstatement (although you may
do so).
You may expand upon the regulatory
requirements to tailor a program to meet
specific needs. However, your policy
should be very specific about what
activities are conducted under federal
regulations and what activities are
conducted under your system’s own
authority.
Going Beyond the Regulatory
Requirements
Whenever you expand your drug and
alcohol program beyond the regulatory
requirements and include aspects not
specifically required by the regulations,
you must ensure that the employee is
aware of which parts are FTA regulatory
requirements, and which are your own
extensions beyond the regulation. For
example, if you wish to test nonsafetysensitive
employees you may do this
under your own authority, but you must
establish a separate testing pool of those
employees.
The FTA Best Practices manual is an
excellent resource for identifying
efficient and effective practices that meet
and go beyond the regulatory
requirements. The manual contains
sample policy language, forms, training
aids, and procedures.
Testing for Other Substances
Although FTA regulations only
require urine testing for five specified
drugs and breath testing for alcohol, you
may wish to include other substances that
may be prevalent in your local area.
Most testing laboratories offer urinetesting
protocols for dozens of drugs
including a panel of nine typical “drugs
of abuse” (amphetamines, cocaine,
marijuana, opiates, phencyclidine,
Chapter 2. Regulatory Overview 2-14 August 2002