Rule/Notice/NOFO: Notice on Testing for Marijuana
Federal Register/Notice: DOT’s Notice
Description: On December 18, 2025, the President of the United States issued an Executive Order (EO) directing the Department of Justice to complete the rescheduling process of marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). DOT received inquiries about what impact this EO will have on DOT’s longstanding regulation about the use of marijuana by safety‐sensitive transportation employees – pilots, school bus drivers, truck drivers, train engineers, subway operators, aircraft maintenance personnel, transit fire‐armed security personnel, ship captains, and pipeline emergency response personnel, among others. Marijuana is still a Schedule I drug under the CSA until any rescheduling is complete. It remains unacceptable for any safety‐sensitive employee subject to drug testing under DOT’s drug testing regulations to use marijuana. Until the rescheduling process is complete, DOT’s drug testing process and regulations will not change. Transportation employees in safety-sensitive positions will still be subject to testing for marijuana. Furthermore, the Department’s guidance on medical and recreational marijuana and CBD are still in effect. Laboratories, Medical Review Officers and Substance Abuse Professionals must continue to follow 49 CFR Part 40. There are no changes to roles and responsibilities as they relate to marijuana.
APTA Staff Advisors: Taria Barron, tbarron@apta.com
