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Violations In A Personal Vehicle Will Impact Your City's CDL Holders MN Cities Magazine (Nov/Dec 2005) By Tracie Chamberlin, HR Manager Earlier this year the state of Minnesota adopted legislation conforming state law with federal regulations addressing standards, requirements and penalties for commercial driver's license (CDL) holders. Effective August I, 2005, convictions for certain offenses (i.e. driving while under the influence of alcohol as prescribed by state law) or serious traffic violations (i.e. excessive speeding) committed in a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) or personal vehicle will count against a driver's ability to hold a CDL. Any offenses that occurred before August 1, 2005, are not covered by this new state law. Seven key provisions are found in the new law and they address the following areas: disqualification for driving while suspended, disqualified, or after causing a fatality; emergency disqualification of drivers posing an imminent hazard; expanded definition of serious traffic violations; extended driver record check; new notification requirements; masking prohibition (convictions will now appear on drivers' records and be available to authorized parties); and disqualification for violations obtained while driving a noncommercial motor vehicle. Even though .many of these provisions require action only at the state level, cities with any job requiring an individual to hold a CDL should review the disqualifying offenses section of the law (see the Tables available at www.fmsca.dot.gov) and share this inforn~ation with every employee holding a CDL. The disqualifying offenses section provides a chart that describes an offense (whether committed in a CMV or non-CMV) and the ensuing penalty. Some city positions that commonly require an employee to hold a CDL include snowplow drivers, heavy equipment operators, and certain maintenance or park positions. Employees or volunteers who drive fire trucks and/or emergency fire equipment as part of their work for the city are not required to hold a CDL. Probably the most notable change that comes with this new ]aw is the penalties for drug and alcohol related offenses. For example, if a CDL holder is arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and/or a controlled substance, for a first conviction or refusal to be tested while operating a CMV or a personal vehicle, a CDL holder must be disqualified from operating a CMV for one year. If a second conviction or refusal to test occurs in this same scenario, the CDL holder is disqualified from operating a CMV for life. Other penalties related to traffic violations have also been identified. If a CDL holder is convicted two or more times in a three year period for a combination of any of the traffic violations noted in the law, that CDL holder is disqualified from driving a CMV for anywhere from 60 to 120 days. Again, the disqualification applies whether the offense occurred in a CMV or in a personal vehicle. Most of these new regulations will not directly affect a city's CDL drug & alcohol testing policies. Rather, these changes are more likely to impact policies and practices related to discipline, light duty, paid time off, and extended leaves of absence. It will be important for cities to review policies, practices and any union contract language that may be affected by the new law. In addition, cities should consider reviewing job descriptions that list "holding a valid CDL" as an essential job function.