Do I need a DOT drug and alcohol consortium?
Short answer: if you are an owner-operator with one CDL driver, yes. If you have more than one driver, you can run your own program, but for a small fleet a consortium is usually simpler.
The rule
Drivers who hold a CDL and drive for a carrier must be in a random drug and alcohol testing program. The program has to pick drivers by a truly random method.
- One covered driver (for example, an owner-operator who is not leased to another carrier): FMCSA says you must belong to a consortium for random testing. You can't select yourself at random, so you need a pool that includes other drivers.
- More than one covered driver: you may run your own random program, but you do the selection, the testing, the records and the reporting yourself.
- If you are leased on to another carrier: ask that carrier first, because their program may cover you.
How many drivers get tested each year
For 2026, FMCSA's minimum random testing rates are 50% of drivers for drug tests and 10% of drivers for alcohol tests. The rates are the same as last year. In a consortium pool, the draw is made across the whole pool, so you may be selected more than once in a year, or not at all.
What happens if you don't have a program
FMCSA's new-entrant safety audit lists two failures that fail the audit on a single occurrence: not implementing a drug and alcohol testing program (49 CFR 382.115), and not implementing a random testing program (49 CFR 382.305). New carriers go through this audit.
What a consortium does for you
- Runs the random selection and tells you who was picked
- Sets up the collection and the lab
- Keeps the records you are required to keep
- Handles Clearinghouse reporting for you, if you authorize it
A consortium does not buy your Clearinghouse query plan. Every employer buys its own. We explain this in our guide on naming a C/TPA in the Clearinghouse:
Central Drug Testing is run by Dr. Schwartz, a physician and Medical Review Officer, so you talk to a doctor or someone in the room with him, not a call center.
What it costs with us
For a new driver, the first-year price is $250 if you enroll January 1 through September 30,
If you enroll a new driver October 1 through December 31, it costs $175,
The contract automatically renews on the first of the year after that and it is $115 per driver per year.
An extra test, if a driver needs one, is $65. There are no other charges.
Sources: FMCSA, "Does an employer have to join a consortium/pool in order to have its drivers tested at random?"; 49 CFR 382.305; 49 CFR 385.321; FMCSA 2026 random testing rates.