The DOT drug and alcohol consortium we send our carriers to
If you hold a CDL and run under your own authority, federal law says you have to be in a random drug and alcohol testing pool, and it says you can't run one by yourself. This is the one we send our carriers to. It runs the random picks and the Clearinghouse reporting, a doctor reviews every result, and the paperwork an auditor asks for comes with it. It starts at $85 a year.
What it costs
One driver, or a handful
$85 a year
That covers your first driver. Every driver after that is $25 a year. This is what almost every owner-operator pays.
Ten drivers or more
$295 a year
Flat, however many drivers you run. It's worth switching at your tenth driver, which is the point where paying per driver passes $295.
No setup fee. No contract. Cancel whenever you want.
Tests, when you need one
Membership covers the program. Individual tests are billed as you use them, at member rates.
| Pre-employment, random, or post-accident test | $69 |
| Return-to-duty or follow-up test | $99 |
| Breath alcohol test | $59 |
| DOT physical exam | $119 |
| Clearinghouse query | $12 |
| Motor vehicle record | $14 to $40 |
What you get
Your random testing pool
You join a pool of 3,500+ carriers. A computer picks drivers out of it at random through the year, enough to hit the rate the law sets: 50% for drugs and 10% for alcohol, counted against the number of driver spots you run. Picks are spread across all four quarters and every one of them is logged for your records.
A doctor reviews every result
Any result that is not a clean pass goes to the Medical Review Officer, the doctor who reads them. Nothing gets reported until that doctor signs off.
Clearinghouse reporting
A C/TPA runs the program. That is a company the government approves to run drug and alcohol testing. They report your results, and any violations, to the FMCSA Clearinghouse for you. The Clearinghouse is the federal record of who tested and what came back.
Your certificate of enrollment
Emailed within minutes of signing up. It's what you show a broker, a shipper, or an officer at roadside to prove you're covered.
A written policy and a DOT guidebook
A drug and alcohol policy written out for your file, plus a plain-English guide to what the DOT expects of you.
Text and email notifications
When one of your drivers gets picked, the notice goes out with the instructions and the closest places to go. Nothing sits in an inbox until it's late.
Records ready for an audit
Your yearly summary report and your full testing history, kept in order for a New Entrant audit or a DOT audit.
Someone to call, day or night
A real person on the phone for an accident, a reasonable-suspicion call, or a return to duty. Not a chatbot.
How random testing actually works
- 1.
A driver gets picked
Each quarter the computer pulls names from the pool. Everyone has the same odds every time, and each pick is time stamped and logged.
- 2.
The driver hears the same day
The driver gets a text and an email with a prepaid pass and the three closest places to go.
- 3.
They walk in and walk out
No appointment. Any of 20,000+ certified collection sites, a standard 5-panel DOT screen, and they are back on the road the same day.
- 4.
It gets reviewed and filed
The doctor reviews the lab result. It lands in your audit file, and it is reported to the Clearinghouse for you.
Your drivers can test anywhere
Nobody is tied to one clinic. There are more than 20,000 certified collection sites across all 50 states, so when a driver is picked, the notice points them at the closest one to wherever they happen to be that day, even if that's a couple thousand miles from home. They hand over the prepaid pass and give a sample, then get back on the road.
Samples go to SAMHSA-certified labs, which means Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp. The program is administered by an FMCSA-registered C/TPA and follows 49 CFR Parts 40 and 382, the two rules that govern DOT testing.
Why you can't just do this yourself
Random testing only works if there are enough names to pull from, so the FMCSA doesn't let a one-driver carrier run its own. If you're an owner-operator, joining a consortium isn't optional. It applies to any CDL driver in a vehicle over 26,001 lbs, hauling placarded hazmat, or carrying 16 or more passengers. That's 49 CFR Part 382.
Enroll today and you're in the pool today
Your certificate is emailed within minutes, and your name goes into the pool for the next quarterly draw.
Questions people ask first
Do I need a drug and alcohol consortium if I am the only driver?
Yes. Any CDL driver operating a vehicle over 26,001 lbs, hauling placarded hazmat, or carrying 16 or more passengers has to be in a random testing program. An owner-operator cannot run a random pool alone, so joining a consortium is not optional. That is 49 CFR Part 382.
What does it cost?
$85 a year covers your first driver, and every driver after that is $25 a year. A fleet pays $295 a year flat, however many drivers you run, which is worth switching to at your tenth driver.
What are the random testing rates?
The FMCSA sets them at 50% for drugs and 10% for alcohol, counted against the number of driver spots you run. Picks are spread across all four quarters and every one is logged for your records.
Where does my driver go to test?
Any of more than 20,000 certified collection sites across all 50 states. When a driver is picked, the notice points them at the closest ones to wherever they are that day, with a prepaid pass.
How fast can I get enrolled?
Your certificate of enrollment is emailed within minutes, and your name goes into the pool for the next quarterly draw. That certificate is what you show a broker, a shipper, or an officer at roadside.
Enrollment and testing are provided by a third-party C/TPA registered with the FMCSA. Foundation Freight is not your C/TPA and does not run the pool.
The other memberships
The federal law that governs freight, written out in plain English. $9.99 a month.
Your deadlines, your drivers and your FMCSA record, watched for you. $14.99 a month, plus $5.99 for each truck after the first.
Every membership is billed to the same account and cancels from the same page. See everything else we do if you still need your authority filed.