Georgia certifies the people who touch your system
Georgia's Chapter 511-3-1 says individuals working as soil classifiers, septic tank contractors, inspection personnel, maintenance personnel or sewage pumpers must be certified by the Department of Public Health. The qualifications are based on education, experience, testing and performance, and are published in the state's Manual for On-Site Sewage Management Systems. Certification must be renewed every two years and depends on continuing education.
Hall County repeats the point on its septic permit application: anyone installing an on-site sewage management system must be certified. For homeowners, the practical takeaway is simple. Before anyone pumps, repairs or installs, check that the company and the person doing the work are on the state's lists.
Where to look
The Department of Public Health's certification and registration page links to current lists of certified installers, pumpers, portable sanitation providers and soil classifiers, the last for level III soil reports. The state's onsite sewage page links the same lists under homeowner resources, and it also publishes a document of disciplinary actions against septic tank contractors and companies.
Hall County's Environmental Health page points to the same state resources: the approved sewage products list and the certified contractors list. If a name is not on the list, ask why before you go further.
Pumpers need a county permit as well
Septic pumping companies in Georgia work under a county septage removal permit. Section I of the state manual says those permits are valid for twelve months and can be denied, suspended or revoked by the county board of health if septage removal and disposal are not carried out under the rules. Hall County posts a Septage Removal Permit Application for pumpers on its Land Use page, and its fee schedule lists an annual septage removal permit with inspection at $150 for the first truck and $25 for each additional truck.
That permit comes with duties you can check on your own job: access through lids or ports only, complete removal of liquid, sludge and scum, inspection of the tees, replacement of excavated soil, a written condition report to you with a copy to the county, and a manifest of where the septage went. Our pumping guide lists each one.
Want a provider to look at your system?
Free Quote RequestQuestions worth asking any provider
Ask which certification the person on site holds and whether the company is certified for the service, installing or pumping. Ask whether the job needs a county permit, who will apply for it and when the county inspection will happen; Georgia requires repairs, replacements and additions to be permitted and inspected. Ask for a written estimate that separates county fees from labor and materials, and compare the fee lines with the county's schedule on our fee calculator page.
For new systems, ask who will prepare the level III soil report and site plan. Hall County accepts site plans from the homeowner, builder, septic contractor, soil classifier, surveyor or engineer, as long as they are to scale. See Hall County septic permit guide for the package.
What we do and do not check
This site is a free referral service. We pass your Free Quote Request to independent local providers; we do not employ them, and we do not certify, license or vouch for anyone. The state's lists are the authority. We encourage every homeowner to check them, to keep the written reports Georgia requires, and to call Hall County Environmental Health with any question about a permit.
If a provider recommends a large repair, a second opinion is reasonable. Our guides to septic repair and drain field repair explain what Georgia requires so you can compare proposals on the same terms.
Red flags worth noticing
A provider who offers to break into a tank lid rather than locate the access ports is describing something Georgia's septage standards prohibit. A provider who suggests skipping the permit for a repair is proposing work Georgia requires to be permitted and inspected. Either is a reason to call someone else.
Watch the paperwork. Georgia requires pumpers to give owners a written condition report and to keep a manifest showing where the septage was disposed of. A provider who cannot explain where your septage goes, or will not put the tank's condition in writing, is not meeting the state's standard.
Be wary of products sold as a substitute for service. Georgia's public health department says septic additives are not beneficial and can be harmful. A provider who recommends additives instead of pumping is contradicting the state's own advisory.