Rockdale County, GA Code Violation Reporting: How to Report (2026)

Section 42-73 governs how the county investigates the nuisance conditions declared in § 42-72. The health officer, defined as the chief executive of the county board of health or an authorized representative, has the right to enter any premises at reasonable times to make whatever inspections and investigations are necessary to enforce the board of health's regulations and protect public health. No person may refuse the health officer full access to inspect premises, and no one may molest or resist the health officer while performing these duties, which is itself an independent violation.

The health officer may take and examine reasonable samples of any substance suspected of creating a nuisance or public health menace. Critically for a resident deciding how to file a complaint, § 42-73(c) requires the health officer to promptly investigate every bona fide complaint that falls under this jurisdiction, but gives the officer discretion to refuse to investigate anonymous complaints. This means providing your name and contact information gives a complaint the strongest legal footing for a mandatory investigation, while an anonymous tip may or may not be pursued.

The department of planning and development handles related complaints under different chapters, including junk vehicles (§ 42-36) and vacant real property registration (§ 42-102), and both the sheriff's office and code enforcement officers share enforcement authority for motor-vehicle nuisances. Enforcement of the nuisance article as a whole carries through to the general penalty at Code § 1-11 by way of § 42-82.