STATE DRUG TESTING LAW 101 BY BILL CURRENT, CURRENT CONSULTING GROUP
Which Laws Within a State Apply to Your Drug Testing Program?
This column will provide our readers with news and updates on state drug testing laws and insight into the On-Line Ultimate Guide to State Drug Testing Laws.
has employees who live and work in multiple states, your policy must reflect and your drug testing program must comply with the legal requirements in each applicable state. In this article, we will focus on the laws within a state that can impact a company’s drug testing policy. As we review the different types of laws and legal considerations
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that exist at the state level it is important to acknowledge that not all of these different laws exist in every state nor do they always directly impact a workplace drug testing program.
Mandatory Law. A state with a mandatory drug testing law typically applies its legal requirements to all private sector companies (and possibly public employers, too) that conduct drug testing. Tese laws may dictate who can be tested, under what circumstances testing may take place, and even how drug testing must be conducted. If you operate in a state with a mandatory drug testing law like Minnesota or Iowa, for example, you must comply with that state’s drug testing law. (Note: some states have industry-specific laws that are mandatory for employers in those industries.)
Voluntary Law. A handful of states have what are known as voluntary drug testing laws that offer specific incentives to encourage employers to conduct drug testing. If a company voluntarily chooses to participate in such a program it must comply with the drug testing requirements of the voluntary program. Tese requirements typically do not apply to non-participating companies, though this is not always the case. For example, the requirements found in Ohio’s voluntary drug testing law become mandatory for certain construction employers with contracts with the state.
Workers’ Compensation Law. Each state has some type of workers’ compensation law. Some of these laws make specific reference to an employer’s right to move to deny or reduce payable benefits if an injured worker was intoxicated or otherwise under the influence at the time of an accident. In some states, the workers’ compensation law includes specific drug testing requirements. In Colorado, a state without a mandatory or voluntary drug testing law, an employer’s program must include the collection of a split specimen that can be used for a confirmatory retest, and the test must take place at a certified laboratory. In Mississippi, a state with a voluntary drug testing law, an employer must drug test in accordance
56 datia focus summer 2015
n the last issue of DATIA focus we discussed which state drug testing laws apply to companies that are located in multiple states. Remember the answer? All of them. If your company
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