The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide this week whether to weigh in on Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s controversial drug-testing policy. It’s been more than three years since Scott issued an executive order seeking across-the-board drug testing for state employees.
The high court is expected to discuss privately Friday whether to hear Scott’s appeal. The governor filed it after a lower court found that the drug-testing plan was too broad. Behind the scenes, justices sift through thousands of cases a year but decide to hear arguments in only about 100.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, with legal representation from the American Civil Liberties Union, challenged Scott's drug-testing policy, contending that it violates the U.S. Constitution's Fourth Amendment ban on unreasonable searches and seizures.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last year that drug tests could not be justified constitutionally for many of the 85,000 workers who would be subject to the policy.
Scott's attorneys argued in their January petition that appeals courts are "deeply divided" about issues involved in the case and that the U.S. Supreme Court has not resolved the questions.
