Data / Federal rules / 2026-20169
Petition for Rulemaking; Notification of Petition for Rulemaking; Invalid Specimen Determinations
The Transportation Department published this proposed rule in the Federal Register on October 1, 2026. Comments are due by November 2, 2026.
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What the agency says
This document announces receipt of a petition for rulemaking received by DOT on February 27, 2026, to initiate a rulemaking to amend 49 CFR part 40. The petitioner's proposed amendments seek to incorporate structured medical verification standards when an employee asserts a plausible medical explanation for abnormal specimen validity findings, including abnormal pH values. Specifically, the petitioner proposes: a defined and finite documentation submission window; required written Medical Review Officer determinations addressing submitted documentation; defined evaluation standards for abnormal urinary chemistry findings; consideration of specialist consultation when diagnosed voiding disorders are asserted; and (5) documented review of medically supported functional voiding disorders prior to verifying refusal determinations based on inability to provide a specimen under direct observation. Through this notification, DOT seeks comment on the petition, as well as any information that could be used in DOT's determination whether to grant the petition.
Key facts
- Document number
- 2026-20169
- Type
- Proposed rule
- Action
- Notification of petition for rulemaking; request for comments
- Agency
- Transportation Department
- Published
- October 1, 2026
- Comments due
- November 2, 2026
- Dates
- DOT will accept comments, data, and information with respect to the Darcy Kern Petition until November 2, 2026.
- Docket
- DOT-OST-2026-3664
- Code of Federal Regulations
- 49 CFR 40
- Pages
- 3
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Everything from the Transportation Department · Published in October 2026
Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-24. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.