Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 3, September 1, 2024
RELATES TO: KRS 351.102, 351.1291, 351.182(7), (8),
351.185(1)(a)-(e), 351.186
NECESSITY, FUNCTION AND CONFORMITY: KRS 351.070(13) authorizes
the Secretary of the Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet to promulgate
administrative regulations necessary and suitable for the proper administration
of KRS Chapter 351. KRS 351.186 authorizes the Office of Mine Safety and
Licensing to certify drug-free workplace programs implemented by an employer
who is also a licensee, for the employer and licensee to be eligible to obtain
a credit on the licensee's premium for workers' compensation insurance. This
administrative regulation establishes the minimum requirements for
certification of a drug-free workplace program.
Section 1. Review of Applications for
Certification of a Drug-free Workplace Program.
(1) The office shall review the application
for certification of a drug-free workplace program and make a written decision
concerning approval or denial of the application.
(2)
(a) If
the application has been denied, the notification of the decision shall include
specific reasons for the denial.
(b) The notification of the decision to
approve or deny the application shall be mailed to the licensee or applicant by
certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address listed on the
licensee's most recent mine license or mine license application.
(c) Service by certified mail shall be
complete:
1. Upon delivery of the
envelope;
2. Upon acceptance by any
person eighteen (18) years or older at the licensee or application
address;
3. Upon refusal to accept
by a person at the licensee address;
4. Upon the U.S. Postal Service's inability
to deliver the notification if properly addressed; or
5. Upon failure of the licensee or applicant
to claim the envelope prior to its return to the office by the U.S. Postal
Service.
(d) The return
receipt or envelope shall be proof of acceptance, refusal, inability to
deliver, or failure to claim the envelope.
(3) The licensee may appeal the rejection as
established in 825 KAR 1:020, Section 4.
Section 2. Approval and Certification of
Drug-Free Workplace Program. The office may approve an application for, and
issue a certification of, a drug-free workplace program to an employer, if the
drug-free workplace program complies with all of the following minimum
requirements:
(1) The program includes alcohol
and substance abuse education and awareness training for employees and
supervisors which:
(a) Provides to all
employees written materials explaining the licensee's policies and procedures
with respect to the drug-free workplace program;
(b)
1.
Provides each employee at least one (1) hour of initial, and at least thirty
(30) minutes refresher each year thereafter, of alcohol and substance abuse
education and awareness training. The training shall include, at a minimum,
information concerning:
a. Alcohol and drug
testing;
b. The effects of alcohol
and drug use on an individual's health, work, and personal life;
c. The disease of alcohol or drug
addiction;
d. Signs and symptoms of
an alcohol or drug problem;
e. The
role of co-workers and supervisors in addressing alcohol or substance abuse;
and
f. Referrals to an employee
assistance program.
2.
The alcohol and substance abuse awareness and education training provided by
the office pursuant to KRS 351.102, 351.106, and 351.1291 as part of
certification or refresher training shall satisfy this requirement if the
licensee provides verification of all employees' attendance at the training
program. "The Mine Safety and Health Administration Form 5000-23" required by
805 KAR 7:030 shall serve as this verification; and
(c) Provides all supervisory personnel, in
addition to the training specified in paragraph (b) of this subsection, with
thirty (30) minutes each year of alcohol and substance abuse education and
awareness training. The training shall include, at a minimum, information on:
1. Recognizing the signs of alcohol and
substance abuse in the workplace;
2. How to document signs of employee alcohol
or substance abuse;
3. How to refer
employees to an employee assistance program or other alcohol and substance
abuse treatment; and
4. Legal and
practical aspects of reasonable suspicion testing for the presence of drugs and
alcohol. The alcohol and substance abuse education and awareness training
provided by the office pursuant to KRS 351.106(3) and 351.1291(4) as part of
certification or refresher training may satisfy this requirement if the
licensee provides verification of attendance of all supervisory personnel at
the training program. "The Mine Safety and Health Administration Form 5000-23"
required by 805 KAR 7:030 shall serve as this verification;
(2) "Reasonable
suspicion testing shall be based on a belief that an employee is using or has
used drugs or alcohol in violation of the employer's policy, drawn from
specific objective and articulable facts and reasonable inferences drawn from
those facts in light of experience, training, or education. The reasonable
suspicion testing shall be based upon:
(a)
While at work, direct observation of drug or alcohol use or of the physical
symptoms or manifestations of being under the influence of a drug or
alcohol;
(b) While at work,
abnormal conduct, erratic behavior, or a significant deterioration in work
performance;
(c) A report of drug
or alcohol use provided by a reliable and credible source;
(d) Evidence that an individual has tampered
with a drug or alcohol test during employment with the current covered
employer;
(e) Information that an
employee has caused, contributed to, or been involved in an accident while at
work; or
(f) Evidence that an
employee has used, possessed, sold, solicited, or transferred illegal or
illicit drugs or used alcohol while on the covered employer's premises or while
operating the covered employer's vehicle, machinery, or equipment.
(3) The program includes breath
alcohol and urine drug testing to which job applicants or employees shall be
required to submit at the following times:
(a)
For urine drug testing:
1. After conditional
offer of employment;
2. After being
selected using a statistically valid, unannounced random method;
3. Upon reasonable suspicion of prohibited
drug use;
4. At Follow-up testing
at least once per quarter for one (1) year after the employee's successful
completion of an employee assistance program for drug-related problems, or a
drug rehabilitation program, or as recommended by the person administering the
drug rehabilitation program; and
5.
Following a mine accident on the licensed premises which requires off-site
medical attention be given to a person.
(b) For breath alcohol testing:
1. After conditional offer of
employment;
2. Upon reasonable
suspicion of prohibited alcohol use;
3. Following a mine accident on the licensed
premises which requires off-site medical attention be given to a person;
and
4. Follow-up testing at least
once per quarter for one (1) year after the employee's successful completion of
an employee assistance program for alcohol-related problems, or an alcohol
rehabilitation program, or as recommended by the person administering the
alcohol rehabilitation program;
(4) The office may issue a certification for
a program that provides for alcohol and drug testing of other fluids or
products of the human body capable of revealing the presence of drugs or
alcohol if the testing is as accurate as, and equivalent to, breath alcohol and
urine drug testing and complies with this section of this administrative
regulation;
(5) The program
includes the minimum testing protocol as established in KRS 351.182(7) and (8);
(6) The program provides that
the collection of samples and administration of drug and alcohol tests shall
follow all standards, procedures and protocols established by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Administration (SAMHSA);
(7) The
program provides that the test results have been performed by a qualified
laboratory;
(8) The program
includes medical review of test results as follows:
(a)
1. All
test results shall be submitted for medical review by the medical review
officer (MRO), who shall consider the medical history of the employee or
applicant, as well as other relevant biomedical information.
2. If there is a positive test result, the
employee or applicant shall be given an opportunity to report to the MRO the
use of any prescription or over-the-counter medication.
(b) If the MRO determines that there is a
legitimate medical explanation for a positive test result, the MRO may certify
that the test results do not indicate the unlawful use of alcohol or a
controlled substance. If the MRO determines, after appropriate review, that
there is not a medical explanation for the positive test result other than the
unauthorized use of alcohol or a prohibited drug, the MRO shall refer the
individual tested to an employee assistance program or to a personnel or
administrative officer for further proceedings in accordance with the
licensee's drug-free workplace program.
(c) Determinations concerning the use of
alcohol or a controlled or illicit substance shall comply with all procedures
outlined in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) "Medical Review Officer
Manual for Federal Agency Workplace Drug Testing Programs";
(9) The program includes an
employee assistance program (EAP) for its employees and supervisory personnel.
(a) The licensee may establish the EAP as a
part of its internal personnel services or may contract with an entity that
provides EAP services.
(b) Employer
licensees' participation in a consortium shall satisfy this requirement;
and
(10) The program
includes controlled-access maintenance at the coal mine of records including
the names and position titles of all employees and supervisory personnel
trained under the program, and the names of all persons who presented alcohol
and substance abuse training, for review by the office.
(11) The program includes a requirement that
all independent contractors required to be certified pursuant to KRS 351.102
comply with the provisions of the licensee's Drug-Free Workplace
Program.
Section 3.
Revocation of Certification.
(1) The office
shall revoke a certification issued pursuant to Section 2 of this
administrative regulation if the licensee discontinues or fails to maintain its
drug-free workplace program in compliance with the requirements of 805 KAR
Chapter 11.
(2)
(a) The notification of revocation shall
include specific reasons for the revocation and shall be mailed to the licensee
by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address listed on the
licensee's most recent mine license.
(b) Service by certified mail shall be
complete:
1. Upon delivery of the
envelope;
2. Upon acceptance by a
person eighteen (18) years or older at the licensee or application
address;
3. Upon refusal to accept
by a person at the licensee address;
4. Upon the U.S. Postal Service's inability
to deliver the notification if properly addressed; or
5. Upon failure to claim the envelope prior
to its return to the office by the U.S. Postal Service.
(c) The return receipt or envelope shall be
proof of acceptance, refusal, inability to deliver, or failure to claim the
envelope.
Section
4. Confidentiality of Records. Records of drug or alcohol test
results, written or otherwise, received by the licensee shall be confidential
communications and shall not be disclosed by the licensee to any party other
than the office, except under the circumstances listed in KRS 351.185(1)(a) through (e).
Section 5. Denial or
Revocation of Certification. A licensee whose application for certification has
been denied or revoked may file a petition of appeal in accordance with the
provisions of 825 KAR 1:020, Section 4.
Section
6. Incorporation by Reference.
(1) The "Medical Review Officer Manual for
Federal Agency Workplace Drug Testing Programs" issued by the Department of
Health and Human Services, November 1, 2004 Edition (DHHS Publication No.
(ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION) 88-1526) is incorporated by reference.
(2) This material may be inspected, copied,
or obtained, subject to applicable copyright law, at the Office of Mine Safety
and Licensing, 300 Sower Boulevard, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601, Monday through
Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.