Drug Testing in the Federal Government

• NCJ Number: 106928
• Journal: Nova Law Review Volume: 11 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1987) Pages: 685-691
• Author(s): P Schroeder; A L Nelson
• Date Published: 1987
• Length: 7 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS.

Annotation

Mandatory drug testing for Federal employees in 'sensitive' positions is a short-sighted response to pervasive drug abuse in American society and is an expensive violation of constitutional protections.

Abstract

President Reagan's executive order of September 15, 1986, subjects Federal employees in 'sensitive' positions to mandatory drug testing. Several Federal organizations have filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana seeking an injunction against the executive order.The same court decided on November 12, 1986 that a random testing program by the U.S. Customs Service was unconstitutional. The Subcommittee on Civil Service conducted a 5-month study on drug testing in the Federal Government and issued a staff report in June 1986. The report faults drug testing as a violation of search-and-seizure constitutional mandates, as costly, as unreliable, and as ineffective. Urinalysis drug testing is also a significant privacy violation, since accurate testing procedures require an observer to watch as a urine sample is provided. 15 footnotes.