Action
Proposed rule; extension of comment period until further notice.
Summary
In general, FRA's regulation on the control of alcohol and drug use currently applies to all railroads that operate on the general railroad system of transportation in the United States. In a December 11, 2001, notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), FRA proposed to amend the regulation to narrow the scope of its current exemption of certain operations by foreign railroads and small railroads from full application of FRA's requirements. Under the NPRM, an employee of a foreign railroad (a railroad incorporated outside the United States) whose primary reporting point is outside the United States (a foreign railroad foreign-based or "FRFB employee"), who performs train or dispatching service in the United States covered by hours of service laws would no longer be exempt from the pre-employment drug testing, random alcohol and drug testing, and employee assistance program requirements of part 219. FRA held a public hearing on February 14, 2002, and extended the comment period until March 14 to allow interested parties time to supplement the record. (FRFB signal service employees, who are few in number, would continue to be exempt from pre- employment testing, random testing, and employee assistance program requirements.) Elsewhere in today's Federal Register, FRA is publishing a Final Rule that, with some amendments, continues in effect an Interim Final Rule requiring all dispatching of railroad operations that occur in the United States to be performed in the United States, with some limited exceptions. On July 10, 2002, the Canadian Human Rights Commission Policy on Alcohol and Drug Testing (Policy) was published. (A copy of the Policy has been placed in the docket of this rulemaking). In accordance with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), FRA is seeking the least-trade-impact solution in furtherance of its national rail safety goals. As part of this process, FRA invites comment on the Policy, which was issued almost four months after the public comment period on the NPRM closed. FRA will keep the comment period open until further notice while it engages in further consultations with the Governments of Canada and Mexico on the safety issues involved in the NPRM.