POST ACCIDENT TESTING – PHMSA

  • by Lance Finley

    • 49 CFR § 199.3 – Definitions

    Accident means an incident reportable under part 191 of this chapter involving gas pipeline facilities or LNG facilities, or an accident reportable under part 195 of this chapter involving hazardous liquid pipeline facilities.

    49 CFR § 191.3 – Definitions

    Incident means any of the following events:

    1. An event that involves a release of gas from a pipeline, gas from an underground natural gas storage facility, liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, refrigerant gas, or gas from an LNG facility, and that results in one or more of the following consequences:
      • A death, or personal injury necessitating in-patient hospitalization;
      • Estimated property damage of (see (c))* or more, including loss to the operator and others, or both, but excluding cost of gas lost; or
      • Unintentional estimated gas loss of three million cubic feet or more*For adjustments for inflation observed in calendar year 2021 onwards, changes to the reporting threshold will be posted on PHMSA’s website Incident Reporting | PHMSA . These changes will be determined in accordance with the procedures in Appendix A to Part 191.
    2. An event that results in an emergency shutdown of an LNG facility or an underground natural gas storage facility. Activation of an emergency shutdown system for reasons other than an actual emergency does not constitute an incident.
    3. An event that is significant in the judgment of the operator, even though it did not meet the criteria of paragraph (1) or (2) of this definition.

    49 CFR § 195.50 – Reporting accidents

    An accident report is required for each failure in a pipeline system subject to this part in which there is a release of the hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide transported resulting in any of the following:

    1. Explosion or fire not intentionally set by the operator.
    2. Release of 5 gallons (19 liters) or more of hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide, except that no report is required for a release of less than 5 barrels (0.8 cubic meters) resulting from a pipeline maintenance activity if the release is:
      • Not otherwise reportable under this section;
      • Not one described in § 195.52(a)(4);
      • Confined to company property or pipeline right-of-way; and
      • Cleaned up promptly;
    3. Death of any person;
    4. Personal injury necessitating hospitalization;
    5. Estimated property damage, including cost of clean-up and recovery, value of lost product, and damage to the property of the operator or others, or both, exceeding $50,000.

    There should be someone within your company who is understands the requirements and can assist in making the final judgment on what is determined to be a valid reason for DOT post-accident drug and alcohol test. Based on the definitions previously outlined, generally these events require a DOT post-accident drug and alcohol test for PHMSA…

    • Death of an individual
    • Hospitalization of an individual
    • Property damage of $50K or more
    • Emergency shutdown
    • Operator judgement
    • Explosion
    • Fire
    • Gas loss

    For all other incidents, Non-DOT drug and alcohol testing should be completed provided you have a company policy that addresses post-incident testing for situations outside the definitions provided by DOT. You should have a written company policy in place for any drug and alcohol testing that is completed that is not required by DOT regulations.

    Federal Register /Vol. 77, No. 36/Thursday, February 23, 2012/Rules and Regulations

    PHMSA regulations in Part 199 require pipeline operators and operators of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facilities to conduct post-accident drug and alcohol tests of covered employees. Within the mandated timelines after a reportable pipeline accident or incident, operators must drug and alcohol test each covered employee whose performance either contributed to the accident or cannot be completely discounted as a contributing factor to the accident or incident. Operators must make the determination of employee contribution to the accident or incident promptly to meet the timelines for testing required by the regulations.

    Under §199.105, post-accident drug tests of covered employees whose performance cannot be completely discounted as a contributing factor to the accident must be completed no later than 32 hours after the accident.

    • Under §199.225(a), if an operator does not complete post-accident alcohol testing of covered employees whose performance cannot be completely discounted as a contributing factor to the accident within two hours of the accident, the operator must prepare and maintain on file a record stating the reasons the test was not promptly administered. If post-accident alcohol testing is not administered within eight hours following the accident, the operator must cease attempts to administer an alcohol test and must state in the record the reasons for not administering the test. Covered employees must remain available for post-accident testing, but emergency response or medical care of the employee are never to be delayed for alcohol testing.
    • Under §199.221, each operator shall prohibit a covered employee who has actual knowledge of an accident in which his or her performance of covered functions has not been discounted by the operator as a contributing factor to the accident from using alcohol for eight hours following the accident, unless he or she has been given a post-accident test under §199.225(a), or the operator has determined that the employee’s performance could not have contributed to the accident.

    POST ACCIDENT TESTING – FMCSA

    49 CFR §382.303 Post-accident testing

    1. As soon as practicable following an occurrence involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public road in commerce, each employer shall test for alcohol for each of its surviving drivers:
      1. Who was performing safety-sensitive functions with respect to the vehicle, if the accident involved the loss of human life; or
      2. Who receives a citation within 8 hours of the occurrence under State or local law for a moving traffic violation arising from the accident, if the accident involved:
        • (i) Bodily injury to any person who, as a result of the injury, immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene of the accident; or
        • (ii) One or more motor vehicles incurring disabling damage as a result of the accident, requiring the motor vehicle to be transported away from the scene by a tow truck or other motor vehicle.
    2. As soon as practicable following an occurrence involving a commercial motor vehicle operating on a public road in commerce, each employer shall test for controlled substances for each of its surviving drivers:
      1. Who was performing safety-sensitive functions with respect to the vehicle, if the accident involved the loss of human life; or
      2. Who receives a citation within thirty-two hours of the occurrence under State or local law for a moving traffic violation arising from the accident, if the accident involved:
        • Bodily injury to any person who, as a result of the injury, immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene of the accident; or
        • One or more motor vehicles incurring disabling damage as a result of the accident, requiring the motor vehicle to be transported away from the scene by a tow truck or other motor vehicle.
    3. The following table notes when a post-accident test is required to be conducted by paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(2), (b)(1), and (b)(2) of this section:

    TABLE FOR §382.303(A) AND (B) Type of accident involved

    Citation issued to the CMV driver

    Test must be performed by employer

    i. Human fatality

    YES NO

    YES YES

    ii. Bodily injury with immediate medical treatment away from the scene

    YES NO

    YES NO

    iii. Disabling damage to any motor vehicle requiring tow away

    YES NO

    YES NO
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