Federal Appeals Court: Some State Employees Can Be Drug Tested, Others Can't

In a unanimous decision, theU.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit has overturned the decision of a federal trial court that declared unconstitutional Florida Gov. Rick Scott's decision to drug test all 85,000 state workers employed by agencies under his control, and all applicants to those positions.

The three-judge panel agreed that it was unconstitutional to test all of those employees, but said there could be good reason to test occupants of, and applicants for, certain "safety- sensitive positions."

The suit had been brought by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Today's ruling returns the case to theU.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, for that court to decide which employees may be forced to undergo suspicionless testing, and which may not.

More to come ...