CITY DRUG-TESTING POLICY MAY EXPAND

There will be no second chance for Charleston city workers under a proposed
drug testing ordinance passed Tuesday night by a council committee.

On a 3-2 vote, council's rules and ordinances committee recommended passage
of Mayor Jay Goldman's proposal to expand the city's drug testing program.

The ordinance would require almost 85 city jobs to administer both
pre-employment and random drug tests to all employees.

The proposal now goes to full council for consideration.

Last month, the same committee declined to endorse the program on a 3-3
vote. Like that meeting, the major debate was about whether employees who
test positive for drug use - marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, opiates and
PCP - should get a second chance.

Councilman David Molgaard said allowing a second chance will give a break
to younger employees, who are those using drugs, statistics show. "We're
going to be putting a lot of young people on the street."

A warning could serve as a wake-up call to some substance abusers who are
in denial. Sometimes that's all a person needs to kick the habit, he said.

But Councilman Charles Loeb, committee chairman, said it's too dangerous to
give drug users a second chance. "They could be injuring a member of the
public or themselves on the job," he said. "I don't think we can take that
risk. I think we have to be pretty tough."

Under the current drug-testing policy, passed in 1996, 146 employees who
have commercial driver's licenses are subject to random tests. The proposed
changes will add several departments, including police officers and
firefighters.

Don Carr, city Public Works director, said that since the current policy
went into effect, 14 city employees have tested positive for drugs.

Molgaard said the current policy has not worked and the new policy will pry
into people's personal lives.

"It's not working," said Molgaard, "whatever we're doing. There's a greater
cost by not providing additional support."

He pointed out marijuana stays in a person's system for 14 to 28 days. "If
they took a puff of a joint a month ago, they're probably not high, but
it's still in their system."

Loeb expects the proposal to be referred to another committee before
council has the opportunity to debate it.