Commissioners Discuss Proposal for CDL Drivers

The Board of County Commissioners heard a proposal that would ensure drivers with commercial driver’s licenses working for the county are driving sober.

Two representatives with the federal Department of Transportation’s FMCSA Clearinghouse discussed the program, which would stop drivers who test positive for drug or alcohol use from leaving the state and getting similar jobs. The nationwide database would flag that driver and keep him from working in the transportation field again.

Employers can be fined if they don’t comply, the FMCSA representatives said, and the fee to join the program is $200 for the first 10 drivers to join, then $100 for each subsequent 10 sign-ups.

The deadline to sign up for the program is Jan. 5, 2021. Each driver must give their consent to participate; if they don’t join, they won’t be allowed to drive.

The program is renewable each year.

In other business, the commissioners:

*Awarded a bid to Pinnacle for a new phone system at the Sequoyah County Courthouse

*Tentatively approved an agreement with Superior Linen for the courthouse, pending approval by the district attorney

*Approved a resolution for the disposal of a copier and a printer by the Sequoyah County Clerk

*Approved a memorandum of understanding between the Cherokee Nation Department of Transportation and Sequoyah County in regard to a Tribal Transportation Facility Inventory proposal. This is a yearly contract that must be approved by the county commissioners

*Approved a 324a claim for the Dwight Mission Road Resurfacing project in Sequoyah County District 2

*Approved a turnover audit in county District 2. Outgoing District 2 Commissioner Steve Carter said the exit audit is to ensure there will be no improprieties when he leaves office in early January

The commissioners also designated Heath Orbanec and Julie Haywood as requisitioning officers for Rural Fire Protection District 1 for 2021 and Nick Martin and Dean Miller as receiving officers for Rural Fire Protection District 1 for 2021. The also appointed Dave Richards and Julie Haywood as requisitioning officers for Liberty Fire Department for 2021 and Mathew Henson and Erin Keen as receiving officers for Liberty Fire Department for 2021.

Laura Brown, KXMX Staff Writer

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