Georgia needs two checks: state and county
Georgia is unusual. The state certification is only half of what a pumper needs. DPH's certification requirements say pumper companies must also hold a current County Septage Removal Permit, and DPH's renewal guidance says that county permit is renewed every year with the local county office, not the state.
So a company can sit on the state list and still be out of date with its county. Ask which county office issued its septage removal permit, then confirm the current record with that office. This directory does not check county permits.
Use the pumper list, not the installer list
DPH certifies companies as Installer, Pumper, or Installer and Pumper. An installer builds a system; it is not approved to pump one. Of the 2010 rows on the state list, 1426 are installer-only. Read the Type column, not just the company name.
DPH keeps a third list for Certified Portable Sanitation Providers. Several septic companies appear on both, so a portable-sanitation listing is not evidence against septic work — and is not evidence for it either.
Verification steps
- Ask for the full company name, its county septage removal permit, and the issuing office.
- Open the official DPH onsite sewage page and find the Certified Installer and Pumper Companies list.
- Match the company name, business-location county, and published phone.
- Confirm the Type says Pumper or Installer and Pumper.
- Call the county office to confirm the septage removal permit is current.
- Confirm the company pumps household tanks at your address, then get a written quote.
What the state list leaves out
DPH publishes a company name, county of business location, certification type and phone — no certificate number, no street address, and no per-company expiration date. State certification renewal is annual, with the 2026 company renewal fee due at the end of February. Our snapshot reflects the list as DPH published it on August 17, 2026, retrieved September 5, 2026; a company can lapse after that without the page changing on the day you look.
How SepticByCounty presents the state list
We publish every in-state company certified to pump — 534 of them — rather than filtering to septic-sounding names, because the Pumper certification is Georgia's septic pumping credential and a name filter would drop legitimate firms. Plumbing, grading and restroom companies hold it too, so the 233 companies whose name never says septic carry a note asking you to confirm household work first. County is the business location, not a promised service area.
Start with the Georgia county directory, then check the state list and the county permit before you book.