This is a reminder that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's (FMCSA) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse will begin downgrading CDL drivers who have a drug or alcohol violation in the system beginning November 18, 2024. The Clearinghouse-II rule requires State Driver Licensing Agencies (SDLA) to remove the commercial driving privileges of drivers in a "prohibited" status in the Clearinghouse, which would result in a downgrade of the CDL until the driver completes the return-to-duty process.

The Clearinghouse-II rule also requires the following:

• SDLAs must also query the Clearinghouse before issuing, renewing, upgrading, or transferring CDLs and issuing, renewing, and upgrading CLPs.
• SDLAs must review a driver's information when notified by FMCSA of a driver's Clearinghouse status change.

SDLAs with legislative authority already have the option to voluntarily query the Clearinghouse and downgrade CDLs for prohibited drivers and may do so before the November 18, 2024 compliance date.

At present, there are over 170,000 CDL drivers with a prohibited driving status after failing their drug tests and have not completed a federal return-to-work process. Automatic downgrading of CDLs due to drug or alcohol violations will make it even more difficult for companies to attract and retain qualified commercial drivers.