Scott County plans phased rollout of random employee drug testing in revised workplace policy

Scott County magistrates and staff discussed a proposed update to the county’s drug-free workplace policy that would add a program of random drug testing for county employees.

Staff and a representative for CenterPoint Business Health described the model: employees would not be notified prior to selection, would have about one hour to report for testing when notified at work, and testing would occur roughly quarterly. The court discussed operational logistics — departmental pools (e.g., EMS, fire, road) to prevent simultaneous loss of multiple critical staff and scheduling flexibility to avoid emergencies or severe weather disruptions.

The court favored a staged rollout: continue existing CDL and other mandated pools, add fire and EMS to the random-testing program on July 1, and bring remaining county employees into the program by Jan. 1, 2027. Judge Covington said he expects staff to return with cost estimates and implementation details; JR (county staff) would be given scheduling discretion to avoid operational disruptions. A reasonable-suspicion policy currently exists to address on-the-job impairment, staff said.