Fla. House Passes State Employee Random Drug Testing Bill
TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) — A bill that would allow the State of Florida to randomly test many state employees for drugs has passed in the Florida House but a similar measure is in trouble in the Senate.
The House bill (HB 1205) passed by a vote of 79-37 on Friday. The Senate bill (SB 1358) had been scheduled to be taken up by the Budget Committee on Thursday but was not considered.
The bill allows state employees to be randomly tested every three months but the random sample can't be more than 10 percent of the agency's workforce. The measure also makes it easier to fire a worker after a first confirmed positive test.
Civil liberties experts and public worker advocates have opposed the proposed law as unfair and providing for unconstitutional "searches" under the Fourth Amendment.
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