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

Recommendation: Know the Regulations
Every transit employer’s Drug and
Alcohol Program Manager (DAPM)
should read and re-read the regulations
several times. If possible, the DAPM
should participate in periodic
conferences, workshops, and
informational meetings on the subject as
they become available. The DAPM should
ask questions of other transit system
program managers, State Department of
Transportation staff, the FTA Office of
Safety and Security staff, as well as other
people in the community that have
knowledge of the subject. With each new
reading, questions, or discussion,
subtleties of the regulation will be
uncovered and new or differing
interpretations will be found. The process
should be considered ongoing and
requires a certain degree of tenacity. An
ongoing effort to know and remain up-todate
with the regulations is essential to
maintain a compliant program.
Section 3. OTHER RESOURCES
While every attempt has been made to
make these guidelines complete, FTA has
produced additional manuals, training aids,
and informational reports to further assist
transit employers in the successful
implementation of a compliant program.
For instance, Chapter 6 “Types of Testing,”
provides a general discussion on the random
testing portion of your drug and alcohol
program. However, FTA published a
separate publication, the Random Drug
Testing Manual, to provide detailed
guidance on how to implement a
comprehensive and defensible random drug
testing regimen as part of an overall
substance abuse management program. The
USDOT, Office of Drug and Alcohol
Program Compliance also publishes
procedural guidelines for service agents
including collection site personnel, Medical
Review Officers (MRO), and Substance
Abuse Professionals (SAP). Where
appropriate, these additional resources are
identified.
The Sample Documentation section at
the end of this chapter contains a list of
sources of additional information that you
may wish to acquire to assist in the
implementation and evaluation of your
substance abuse management program. The
FTA Drug and Alcohol Regulation Updates
newsletter is another source of information,
as it announces the publication of new
materials and includes a list of resource
materials that is kept current.
Regulatory Text
Statements in this manual that refer to
regulatory requirements contain the
words “shall” or “must: (e.g., “A
substance abuse management program
shall include a policy statement…”).
Program elements not explicitly
required by regulations, but suggested
as an integral part of successful
implementation are generally addressed
using the word “should.” Optional
elements, or those program features that
have several acceptable alternatives, are
normally expressed by use of the word
“may.”
FTA’s Web site (www.fta.dot.gov) can
also be accessed to obtain accurate and upto-the-minute
information about the FTA
drug and alcohol testing regulations and
related topics. This site provides various
links which access information from
different FTA offices. You can read FTA’s
mission statement, strategic plan, news
releases, calendar of events, regional office
information, and messages from the
Administrator.
Chapter 1. Introduction 1-5 August 2002