Resolution To Audit Drug Testing Programs In Jefferson County.

September 12, 2019 Tom Rector Jr. introduced a resolution to Louisville Metro Council urging them to review and possibly eliminate their drug testing programs.

Tom, and the 'My Right To Decide' group, had great success with working with the city council members to pass an LLEPO, which ultimately led to the county attorney making a public announcement two weeks ago about his office will no longer prosecute minor possession of marijuana.

Drug testing for THC has a long history of destroying the lives of folks partaking in cannabis and it has also been a driving factor behind the opioid crisis our country is currently facing.

Now folks across the bluegrass are facing another major setback caused by prohibition and limited legislation being written to help companies protect their Hemp investment, by attempting to change the definition of marijuana.

These efforts to deceive the public and ultimately the DEAs all across the US are causing folks to fail drug screenings due to the THC found in Hemp.

The CBD industry is thriving all across Kentucky and unaware folks believe they are taking something other than cannabis oil, and in some cases they are, but for the most part, real CBD products contain small amounts of the illegal cannabinol THC, and after awhile, that illegal substance that many folks believe makes people ‘high’ builds to a level that will be detected by a urinalysises.

The current drug testing policies implemented across the state doesn’t distinguish between smoked THC, or THC ingested through our digestive system. No matter how you have been consuming your cannabinol you can lose your job, your promotions, student aid, government housing and government loans as well as possibly losing your freedom and children, because no matter what you’ve been told about CBD products, it is still a derivative of the cannabis plant, aka marijuana!

Drug testing Spawned from prohibition and the need to prosecute folks partaking in cannabis, and just like prohibition it has advanced its way into destroying the lives of the middle and lower class. Drug testing keeps the middle and lower class from having a chance at bettering themselves by forcing them into jobs with lower pay and no benefits because those types of jobs don’t typically drug test unless there is a workplace incident requiring a urinalysis.

The US has been seeing a major shift in the way companies deal with drug testing. Many companies across the country, especially in states with full legalization legislation in place, have eliminated testing for THC, and they are adopting impairment testing which consist of computerized cognitive testing.

Using a test to test for impairment with a drug test meant to detect the smallest amount of THC in a persons blood was never meant to prove impairment! It’s only purpose was to jail men of color, just as the prohibition of marijuana was only meant to eliminate competition in an industry being threatened by a renewable resource; our 1937 racist government wanted The People to believe ‘blacks and jazz musicians’ would force white women to smoke marijuana (even though the goal was to eliminate 'hemp' production) so they would have sex with them. This racist propaganda ultimately fooled The People into approving prohibition but, prohibition against cannabis (hemp, marijuana) became such a cash cow for DEAs across the country it eventually swallowed up the low income families, forced the creation of more harmful drugs that couldn’t be detected, and now it is threatening the middle class and the national life expectancy of all Americans.

It’s time Kentucky catches up to the research. It’s time Kentucky catches up to the other 34 states with cannabis legalization. And it’s time once again the great city of Louisville steps up and moves us forward with a resolution urging companies across the bluegrass to review their drug testing policies and implement a more practical non-bias test that will allow them to get the folks they need to fill the tens of thousands of vacant positions across the bluegrass.

RESOLUTION NO. , SERIES 2019

A RESOLUTION BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OF THE LOUISVILLE/JEFFERSON COUNTY METRO GOVERNMENT RECOMMENDING THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AUDIT THE FEDERAL WORFORCE DRUG TESTING AND TRANSPORTATION EMPLOYEE DRUG TESTING PROGRAMS. THIS RESOLUTION ALSO RECOMMENDS AN INTERNAL AUDIT OF ALL DRUG TESTING PROGRAMS IN THE JURISDICTION OF THE LOUISVILLLE/ JEFFERSON COUNTY METRO GOVERNMENT

HOPEFULLY SPONSORED BY: COUNCIL MEMBERS GREEN , SHANKLIN, DORSEY, SEXTON SMITH, PURVIS, JAMES, McCRANEY, COAN, HOLLANDER, MULVHILL, KRAMER, BLACKWELL, FOX, FOWLER, TRIPLETT, REED, WINKLER, PARKER, PIAGENTINI, BENSON, GEORGE, ENGEL, PEDEN, FLOOD, YATES, ACKERSON

WHEREAS, the United States of America is the only country on earth to adopt widespread drug testing of its citizens performing nearly a billion drug tests in the last 30 years and

WHEREAS, despite mass drug testing of the American people the use of dangerous drugs has escalated dramatically during the drug testing era and

WHEREAS, numerous studies show that drug testing doesn’t improve safety or productivity in the workplace including the federal government’s own data found in the toxicology database of pilot fatalities involved in aviation accidents over the last 30 years and

WHEREAS, the legalization of cannabis across the United States, including the relaxation of prosecutions in the Louisville/Jefferson County government district, is further exacerbating the negative consequences of drug testing unfairly punishing citizens who are engaging in lawful acts and

WHEREAS, legislation protecting citizens from drug testing for THC are passing in other states and municipalities across the country and

WHEREAS, the bipartisan “Fairness in Federal Drug Testing under State Laws Act” has been introduced in the U.S. Congress to protect workers who are consuming cannabis in compliance with state law on their off time from the negative repercussions of a positive drug test for THC metabolites and

WHEREAS, the U.S Supreme Court clearly erred in deciding in favor of the federal government’s right to drug test its citizens instead of upholding the protections from unreasonable searches guaranteed in the fourth amendment of the U.S. Constitution and

WHEREAS, the Constitution of Kentucky guarantees all Kentucky citizens the right to pursue safety, which means that the laws that prevent cannabis possession, cultivation or use violate that right because cannabis is clearly safer than alcohol, prescription and even most over-the-counter drugs.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OF THE LOUISVILLE/JEFFERSON COUNTY METRO GOVERNMENT (“METRO COUNCIL”) AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION I: The Louisville Metro Council recommends that the United States Government immediately audit all federally mandated drug testing programs including the Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense. Specific consideration should be given to the effectiveness of drug testing for THC metabolites and consideration given to replacing drug testing with computerized based impairment testing.

SECTION II: The Louisville Metro council recommends that the city create a task force with the Mayor’s office to review drug testing procedures for all city employees. The task force will perform cost-benefit analysis with specific consideration given to the effectiveness of drug testing for THC metabolites.

SECTION III: This resolution shall take effect on passage and approval. We request the Clerk of the Metro Council forward copies of this resolution to the President of the United States Donald J. Trump, the U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, The Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, and to the acting Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.