BRIEFLY
IN THE
LEGISLATURE

Random drug tests may be permitted

    A bill that would permit random testing of workers for drug or alcohol use was introduced Tuesday by Sen. Derryl McLaren, R-Farragut.
    McLaren's action is significant because he's one of just three Republicans whose defections from the party line last year prevented passage of business-backed legislation to increase employers' testing authority.
    "I'm trying to break the logjam, and do something pragmatic," McLaren said.
    Whether McLaren's action prompts the Senate to re-open the drug testing debate is unclear because his bill contains restrictions that business lobbyists have resisted.  Among them is a provision prohibiting the use of blood as a testing medium.  Blood may reveal genetic weaknesses that could lead to future discrimination in employment or insurance coverage, McLaren said.

QUOTE
OF THE
DAY

"That bill was
written to protect
drug users in the
workplace."

- Sen. Steve King, R-Kiron
On the 1987 Iowa law setting
the rules for drug- and alcohol-
testing in the workplace.

The Des Moines Register
Wednesday, February 18, 1998, Page 5M
letters@news.dmreg.com