Judges: Fla. worker drug test ban too broad

By CURT ANDERSON

AP Legal Affairs Writer

MIAMI (AP) -- Gov. Rick Scott may get at least some of his state worker random drug testing program reinstated.

Judges on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said at a hearing Friday that a lower court's decision invalidating all drug tests for some 85,000 workers may have been overbroad. The judges said it's clear that drug testing is constitutional for some workers, such as those in law enforcement.

No immediate ruling was issued. One appeals judge indicated the panel might send the case back for a narrower ruling allowing testing of workers in safety-sensitive positions.

Scott's executive order on drug testing was ruled unconstitutional last year by a Miami federal judge as an unreasonable search.

Opposing drug testing are a state workers labor union and the American Civil Liberties Union.

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