The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has confirmed a significant and ongoing safety risk for fleets: over 190,000 Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) holders are currently in a “prohibited” status within the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. This alarming figure represents approximately one in every 30 CDL holders. The latest data, including the August 2025 Monthly Summary Report, underscores the critical importance of a robust, continuous compliance strategy. This data indicates that relying only on the annual query requirement leaves your fleet unnecessarily exposed.

The Cost of Complacency

A key finding from the data is that 62% of drivers with at least one violation remain in a prohibited status, and nearly 148,000 of those drivers have not yet started the necessary Return-to-Duty (RTD) process. Despite this, these individuals retain their state-issued commercial licenses and may actively seek employment. Consequently, without diligent and ongoing monitoring, a prohibited driver could easily be placed behind the wheel of a Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) in your fleet.

Since November 2024, state licensing agencies have been required to downgrade the CDLs of prohibited drivers. However, the system is not instantaneous, and a delay in status change poses a risk. Failure to run the required queries can result in severe financial penalties, often ranging from $7,000 to $10,000 per violation. Furthermore, compliance gaps negatively affect your fleet’s Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores, which can trigger additional scrutiny from the FMCSA.

Essential Steps for Proactive Compliance

To effectively manage this risk, your fleet must move past a bare-minimum compliance approach. The Clearinghouse data changes daily, with drivers moving in and out of prohibited status based on new violations or the completion of the RTD process. Therefore, an annual limited query, while required, is insufficient for real-time safety management.

You should consider increasing query frequency, performing queries monthly or quarterly, which is a tactic used by some proactive carriers to catch status changes faster. In addition, you must ensure seamless compliance with all requirements:

• Run a full query before hiring any new CDL driver.
• Conduct a limited query on every CDL driver at least once every 365 days.

Fleetworthy, a compliance technology provider, highlights that automated query scheduling and proper documentation are vital for audit readiness (For a detailed look at the driver violation data, review the findings cited here: FMCSA Clearinghouse Update: One in 30 CDL Drivers Is in Prohibited Status). Implementing an automated system will ensure no deadline is missed and will provide the consistent monitoring necessary to protect your operation, your drivers, and the public.

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