Macon, Georgia: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes — a permit, per rep. Macon-Bibb County Code Division 20, Door-to-Door Commercial Solicitation, makes it "unlawful for any person to engage in solicitation in Macon-Bibb County without first obtaining a permit from the Tax Commissioner" (7-483(a)), and its definition of "solicitation" expressly covers going door to door to sell goods or take orders for future performance of services (7-482) — which covers fiber, solar, pest and security sales.
• Where it comes from: The Tax Commissioner's office issues the permit (7-483(a), 7-484(a)); Macon-Bibb County's Business License Office reviews the application and orders the background investigation (7-484(d)).
• Fee: Not published in the code. Section 7-484(b) only says "all applications shall be accompanied by the fee established by the mayor and commission as it may be amended from time to time" — the dollar amount is set on a separate administrative fee schedule that was not found on a primary page in this session. Anyone whose solicitation involves cash deposits, C.O.D. orders, or financing for future delivery/service must also post a $5,000.00 bond for the fiscal year (7-484(c)).
• Hours you may knock: 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. — soliciting between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. is unlawful (7-489(a)) — and never on Sunday or any federal or state holiday (7-489(b)).
• What the rep carries: The county-issued identification badge, worn at all times while soliciting (7-486), plus a legible copy of the permit itself, which must be produced on demand (7-492(b)). At first contact and every later contact, the rep must state their identity, the legal name of the company they represent, the purpose of the call, and the goods or services being offered (7-492(a)).
• What takes the time: A criminal background check and personal-character investigation are ordered once the application is complete (7-484(d)); a permit is denied for certain convictions within the past 5 years, an incomplete or false application, an unpaid fee, or a missing bond (7-485). A permit is valid for no more than 60 days and cannot be transferred (7-483(b)-(c)).
• Code: Macon-Bibb County Code, Chapter 7, Article II, Division 20, Door-to-Door Commercial Solicitation (§§ 7-481–7-494).
• Worth knowing: A property posted with a "No Soliciting" sign or comparable placard at its entrance is off-limits for entry, commercial or not (7-490), and any rep must leave immediately if the owner or occupant asks (7-491). Every sale or order taken, and every contribution obtained, must get the customer a written receipt on request, itemizing the rep's name and business address, the goods/services and amount, and (for a donation) the intended use (7-493). Written receipts and the pricing rules of the older Division 6 (transient merchants/peddlers, 7-171 to 7-173) apply to a different category — vendors selling goods without a permanent county location — and are separate from this door-to-door permit.
• Read it yourself: Macon-Bibb County Code, Chapter 7, Division 20, Door-to-Door Commercial Solicitation · Macon-Bibb County Code, Chapter 7, Division 6, Soliciting and Transient Merchants · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down: The current dollar amount of the Division 20 solicitation permit application fee on the mayor and commission's fee schedule; Whether the fee and permit are issued per individual rep or can be issued once for a company's whole crew; Typical turnaround time for the background investigation before the permit issues. Clerk’s name ______________   Direct line ______________   Date called ______________