County resources
Utilities, schools, property records, homestead filing and more for new and soon-to-be homeowners in Danielsville, Comer, Colbert, Hull.
Good to know: utility providers and school zones can depend on your exact address — always confirm with the provider. Information is provided as a convenience and may change; let us know if you spot something out of date.
In Madison County, the Board of Assessors (Property Valuation office) sets property values. The Tax Commissioner bills and collects the taxes. Both offices are in the Government Complex at 91 Albany Ave in Danielsville. Bills normally go out in September and are due December 20.
Bills and collects property, mobile home and timber taxes. Open Monday–Friday, 8:00–4:30. Bills usually mail in September and are due December 20; partial payments are accepted, and there's a drop box at the back of the Government Complex.
The county's official online payment portal, linked from the Tax Commissioner's page. Have your bill or parcel number ready.
Sets values and approves exemptions. Open Monday–Friday, 8:00–5:00. Assessment notices usually mail in April or May, and you have 45 days to appeal. Appeals must be USPS-postmarked; email and fax aren't accepted.
The Assessors' official parcel search. It shows owner, values, acreage, sales and exemptions. Values come from the most recent published digest, so call the Tax Commissioner with bill questions.
Records deeds, plats and liens for Madison County. Plats are e-filed, and new lot splits must first be stamped by county Zoning.
The statewide clerks' authority index for searching recorded deeds and liens by name or book/page.
In Madison County, you file for homestead with the Property Valuation (Tax Assessors') office, not the Tax Commissioner. The deadline is April 1, and you must own and live in the home on January 1. Once approved, it renews automatically until you sell or move. Ask the Assessors whether the statewide HB 581 "floating" homestead applies to your county and school taxes, because the county's own pages don't say.
File between January 1 and April 1 for the current tax year. Bring a driver's license or approved photo ID; income-based senior exemptions also need proof of the prior year's income. Mailed applications must be USPS-postmarked by the deadline.
The county's brochure. The regular exemption (S1) is $2,000. Age 62 with household income at or below $10,000 adds $10,000. Age 65 adds $10,000 with no income test. Age 70 brings the total to $18,000 with no income test. It also covers the 100% disabled veteran exemption.
The Tax Commissioner's official brochure, updated July 2025. It covers each exemption, conservation use covenants and the three ways to appeal. Disabled veteran and surviving spouse exemptions are up to $121,812.
Colbert offers a separate city homestead exemption (up to $6,000) for homes inside the city limits. Update forms must be completed in person at City Hall, which is open Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
The state's overview of homestead exemptions, including senior, disabled veteran and surviving spouse exemptions. It also covers statewide changes such as the HB 581 floating homestead exemption.
In Madison County, your water provider depends on your address. Danielsville and Comer run their own water systems, and Colbert's water is operated by Piedmont Water Company. Some rural areas are on the county Water Department, but many homes use private wells and septic. Check the seller's water bill, or call the city hall for Hull, Ila or Carlton addresses.
Serves more than 2,000 customers in unincorporated areas from county wells plus water bought from nearby systems. Bills are due the 28th of each month. For after-hours emergencies, call (706) 207-5093.
The city's utility forms page. The property owner must sign a notarized indemnification agreement before service is connected. Bills are due by 3 p.m. on the 15th; after that, a $25 late fee applies.
New service costs a $50 activation fee plus a $150 deposit. Residential tap fees are $1,500 for water and $2,000 for sewer. City Hall is open Monday–Friday, 8–5.
Colbert water is operated by Piedmont Water Company. A new home or meter pays a $1,200 availability fee to the city, then a separate tap fee to Piedmont. Rates differ for addresses inside and outside the city limits.
Call for water service, taps, outages or discolored water in the Colbert system.
Lists contacts for all six city halls. Call Hull (762) 234-0430, Ila (706) 789-2244 or Carlton (706) 797-3210 to ask about utilities at a city address.
Most homes in rural Madison County use a septic system and many use a private well. Septic permits and inspections come from Madison County Environmental Health, and the county won't issue a building permit without Health Department approval when required. As of this update, Environmental Health is working from a temporary location while the health department building is closed for repairs.
Handles septic permits, repairs, existing-system evaluations and well/septic setbacks. Specialists are in the office 8:00–9:30 a.m. on weekdays. The phone number and address are temporary while the main building at 1424 Hwy 98 W is closed, so check the page before visiting.
Septic permit applications for each county, plus homeowner guides and lists of Georgia-certified septic pumpers and installers. Use these when buying a home with a septic system or planning repairs.
Your local starting point for well-water, soil and pond testing. Staff provide sample bottles and explain fees. Open Monday–Friday, 8:00–5:00, closed for lunch 12–1.
Lists the lab's water tests, including the private well chemical test, bacteria (coliform/E. coli) tests and the home loan closing water test. Submit samples through the county Extension office.
The state's private-well program, aimed at reducing illness from private (non-public) wells. Read it alongside the testing options from Extension.
Madison County is split among several electric providers: Jackson EMC, Hart EMC, Rayle EMC and Georgia Power. Which one serves you depends on your exact address, so check the seller's power bill or call the provider before closing.
Jackson EMC lists Madison among the 10 counties it serves, and its local office is in Hull. The general assistance line is 1-800-462-3691 (7 a.m.–6 p.m. weekdays).
Hart EMC's own history lists Madison among the counties it has served since 1937. Call with your address to confirm service. Payments-only line: (866) 916-4278.
Rayle EMC lists Madison among the 10 counties it serves. The headquarters line also takes outage calls 24 hours a day.
Georgia Power serves 155 of Georgia's 159 counties. In Madison County, many addresses are on an EMC instead, so confirm your provider before setting up service.
Natural gas lines may not reach every road in rural Madison County. Where it is, Atlanta Gas Light owns the pipes, and you buy gas from a certified marketer of your choice. All six Madison County ZIP codes are in AGL's service list, but service varies street by street.
Enter your ZIP code to see whether AGL serves it. Even within a served ZIP, gas lines may not reach your street, so ask AGL about a specific address.
Call AGL, not your marketer, if you smell gas or have a leak or emergency. Call 811 before you dig.
The official list of marketers you can buy gas from on the AGL system. Compare rates before you sign up.
Unincorporated Madison County has no county curbside pickup. You either hire a private hauler or take trash and recycling to the county Transfer Station. Some cities arrange pickup: Comer bills for garbage, Hull requires AAA Sanitation, and Colbert and Danielsville residents use Waste Pro.
Open Wednesday–Saturday, 7:00–5:30, and closed Sunday–Tuesday. Loads must be tarped. You pay by the bag or by weight, in cash or local check only (no cards). It takes no construction debris and charges a fee for tires.
Spring and fall events offer document shredding and medicine take-back. Tire amnesty months let residents drop off up to 10 tires free. After the holidays, live Christmas trees can be recycled at the Transfer Station.
A private hauler that lists Colbert, Danielsville and Ila among its service areas. Colbert's city page lists Waste Pro trash pickup at $14 a month inside city limits; customers pay Waste Pro directly.
Since January 1, 2024, AAA Sanitation is the only hauler allowed to collect residential trash inside Hull city limits. Call AAA to start service.
Comer bills residential garbage with your utilities, at $18 a month per 96-gallon can. Only bagged garbage that fits inside the can is picked up. Call AAA at (706) 543-7788 for missed pickups or replacement cans.
Waste Pro picks up on Mondays; put trash out by 7 a.m. Inside the city it's $14 a month; outside the city it's $19 a month for Piedmont Water customers. Take recycling to the county Transfer Station.
Internet options in rural Madison County vary widely from road to road. Spectrum has been expanding with a state grant to reach unserved homes. Always check the exact address on the FCC map, and confirm with the provider, before you count on service.
Enter an exact address to see which providers report service there and at what speeds. The county's homepage links to this map.
Georgia's statewide broadband maps and expansion program updates.
Spectrum's announcement of gigabit service to nearly 11,000 unserved homes and businesses in Banks, Madison and Oglethorpe counties, funded by a Georgia Capital Projects Fund grant. Check your address to see whether it's live yet.
Use Spectrum's address check to confirm availability before you buy or move in.
Madison County School District serves the whole county, including all six towns. Your elementary school depends on your address, and we couldn't find an online zone lookup, so call Central Registration with the street address.
The district's main site, with school calendars, school pages and news.
Register at the Board of Education (ext. 1400): Monday–Thursday, 8–4, and Friday, 8–noon. Bring a long-form birth certificate, Social Security card, parent photo ID, two proofs of residency, Georgia Form 3231 (immunizations) and Form 3300 (hearing, vision, dental, nutrition). Ask which school serves the address.
Call ext. 1411 for bus stop and route assignments. Buses pick up and drop off at students' homes.
For unincorporated Madison County, zoning goes through county Planning & Zoning, and building permits and inspections go through county Building Inspections. Inside Colbert, Comer, Danielsville or Ila, first get a written approval letter from that city hall, then take it to the county for your building permit. Hull has its own zoning and code enforcement officer.
Handles rezoning, variances, plats and setbacks. Common setbacks are 15 ft from side lines, 20 ft from the rear and 60 ft from a county road's centerline. Rezoning applications need an appointment at (706) 795-6345. A property can be split only 3 times (4 lots) in 3 years before subdivision rules apply.
Permits are issued Monday–Friday, 8:00–4:30; arrive by 4:00 with a complete application. Inspections must be requested by phone, not by email or voicemail. A notarized owner authorization is required for anyone else to pull a permit.
Apply online for many county building permits and zoning requests, and file code complaints. Permits not yet online still have to be submitted in person.
The county's full ordinance code on Municode. The zoning ordinance and its amendments are on the Planning & Zoning page.
Report drainage or stormwater complaints to the county's EPD coordinator. New construction of 5,000 sq ft or more needs a stormwater plan.
Submit a plat and a scale drawing to City Hall first. Once the city approves, it sends a letter to the county, which issues the permit and does inspections. Zoning applications are $150.
Danielsville's city ordinances. Get the city's approval letter before applying for a county building permit.
Colbert's city codes. Call City Hall (open weekdays 8–1) about permits and zoning inside city limits.
Lynn Shedd is Hull's code enforcement and zoning officer. Hull's zoning code and encroachment application are on the city's Info & Forms page.
The Madison County Sheriff's Office patrols the whole county, and Comer also has its own police department. Fire protection comes from 11 volunteer fire departments, and the county runs ambulance service from four EMS stations. Call 911 for emergencies.
The administrative office is open Monday–Friday, 8–5, for reports and general questions. You can request a security or house check online while you're away.
To have a deputy sent outside office hours in a non-emergency, call dispatch. The county asks you to let dispatch know before outdoor burning. Sign up for CodeRED emergency alerts on this page.
County ambulance service, with stations in Danielsville, Comer, Ila and Hull. For billing questions, call (706) 795-6307.
Lists all 11 volunteer fire departments with station addresses. Find your nearest station; homeowners insurers often ask for it.
City police for Comer. Outside Comer, call the Sheriff's Office.
The Sheriff's link to the Offender Watch search. You can also sign up for email alerts when an offender moves near you.
The statewide registry, searchable by name or address.
Most county services are at the Government Complex at 91 Albany Ave in Danielsville. That's where you'll get your car tag and pay taxes. New residents must get a Georgia driver's license showing their Madison County address before registering a vehicle, and must register within 30 days.
This is the only tag office in the county. First-time registrations and titles must be done in person, and the one-time title ad valorem tax (TAVT) is due at titling. Renew online or by mail to skip lines.
The state's motor vehicle hub for registration, titles and TAVT information.
Update your license to your new address before registering your car. The county's FAQ lists the nearest office as 1505 US 29 North in Athens.
The county FAQ says the Registrar's Office is beside the Government Complex. The elections board's own site (mcelections.net) lists 20 Albany Ave and (706) 795-6335, so call before you go. You can also register online through the My Voter Page.
Check your registration, polling place and sample ballot online.
Part of the Athens Regional Library System. Open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 10–6, and Tuesday and Thursday 10–8.
Runs youth and adult sports, Rotary Splash Island, the disc golf course and county parks. The office is open Monday–Friday, 8–5.
Handles dog complaints only. For wild animal calls, contact Georgia DNR Wildlife at (770) 535-5700. Strays are held 3 days before transfer to the MOAS shelter.
Pet adoptions, plus low-cost vaccine clinics on the third Sunday of each month, 11–3. The shelter warns it may have to close this fall due to funding, so call ahead.
Call to get a 911 address assigned to new construction or a newly split lot. Open Monday–Friday, 8:00–4:30.
Maintains about 574 miles of county roads, including potholes, signs, ditches and gravel-road scraping. Report problems with the online road complaint form.
Home to Georgia's longest covered bridge, with camping, hiking trails, picnicking and fishing near Comer.
Land along the South Fork of the Broad River and other creeks can be in a FEMA flood zone. Check the official flood map for any parcel near water before you buy, and ask your lender whether flood insurance is required.
Search an address to see the official FEMA flood zone and download a FIRMette map for your lender or insurer.
Georgia's statewide flood map viewer, another way to view the FEMA flood zones.
Look up the parcel and its boundaries, then confirm the flood zone on FEMA's map.
Buying in a neighborhood with an HOA? Read the covenants during due diligence.
Use our under-contract checklist, find trusted local pros, or ask your agent anything.