Hamilton County
Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department, Environmental Health
In short
Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department, Environmental Health issues 3 permits we publish for Hamilton County, last verified 2026-10-08. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.
What this agency issues
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food Service Establishment Permit (Contract County) | Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department, Environmental Health | $30–$360 per year — $210 for 0–50 seats, $360 for 51 or more; auxiliary $100; temporary $30; child care $50 (0–50 seats) or $80 (51+); farmers market food unit $300 (State fees under Rule 1200-23-01-.09) | annual; the Health Department's permit year runs July 1 to June 30 | 2026-10-08 |
| Mobile Food Unit — Plan Review and Permitonly if it applies to you | Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department, Environmental Health | A permit fee tier for a mobile food unit is not published in Rule 1200-23-01-.09 or on the Health Department's permit fee sheet; contact Hamilton County Environmental Health (423-209-8110) for the amount that applies. | annual food service permit year (July 1 to June 30) | 2026-10-08 |
| Public Swimming Pool Permitonly if it applies to you | Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department, Environmental Health | $340 per pool per year (April 1 to March 31); $170 when applying after October 1 | annual, April 1 to March 31 | 2026-10-08 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
About each permit
Food Service Establishment Permit (Contract County)
The Tennessee Department of Health's Environmental Health page names Hamilton as one of the 'Contract Counties' responsible for their own food establishment inspections, invoicing, permitting and enforcement, so a food service establishment in Hamilton County, inside or outside a city, is permitted and inspected by the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department (423-209-8110). The fees are the State's: the Health Department's Public Facilities Inspection page links 'the permit fees, set by the State of Tennessee', and says fees must be paid before an establishment can open. Rule 1200-23-01-.09 (new rule effective June 14, 2026) sets $210 a year for 0–50 seats, $360 for 51 or more, $100 for an auxiliary establishment, $30 for a temporary establishment, $50 or $80 for a child care food service establishment (0–50 or 51+ seats) and $300 for a farmers market food unit. Under T.C.A. § 68-14-713(c) a fee delinquent for more than 30 days carries a penalty of one-half the permit fee; the county's permit fee sheet lists the late penalty as one-half of the original fee, starting August 1 for food permits. The county's application page asks a new business, a new owner, a new name or a renovation to submit the plan form and a floor plan before construction; its Public Facilities page quotes T.C.A. § 68-14-706(d) that no permit is transferred to another location or person.
Mobile Food Unit — Plan Review and Permit
As published on the Health Department's Apply for Food Service Establishment page, a mobile food unit (a food establishment 'designed to be readily moved and vend food') goes through plan review before it operates: the online application asks for a detailed menu and anticipated volume, a written food flow process, a scaled floor plan with every sink, water heater and piece of equipment, interior finishes and shielded lighting. The page sets the build requirements: a three-compartment sink with drain boards where required, a hand sink accessible at all times, a pressurized potable water system, a wastewater tank 15 percent larger than the potable tank and emptied into an approved sanitary sewer, self-closing doors and screened serving windows, and no hard-wired utility connection. An operator that needs a commissary completes the commissary agreement form; one that does not completes a servicing area agreement. A permit fee tier for a mobile unit is not published in the State fee rule or on the county's fee sheet; contact Environmental Health at 423-209-8110.
Public Swimming Pool Permit
A fitness studio or gym with a pool or spa open to members operates a public swimming pool; a studio without a pool needs no pool permit. As published on the Health Department's Swimming Pools page, Environmental Health permits and inspects public pools, reviews and approves plans for new and remodelled public pools and spas (allow up to 14 business days, and there are no fees for plan review), and 'Annual pool permit fees are $340/year and begin on April 1 of the year.' The $340 is the State's figure: T.C.A. § 68-14-313(a)(1) sets the permit fee to operate a public swimming pool at three hundred forty dollars, and § 68-14-315(b) charges half the annual rate for a permit applied for after October 1, which the county's permit fee sheet shows as $170. Under § 68-14-313(a)(2) a fee delinquent for more than 30 days carries a penalty of one-half the fee; the county's sheet sends pool renewals on February 15 with the late fee starting May 1. Call 423-209-8110.
Contact
- Jurisdiction
- Hamilton County
- Phone
- 423-209-8110
Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.
Sources
Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.
- Apply for Food Service Establishment (including mobile food units)Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Environmental Health Permit Fees (permit years, renewal and late-fee dates)Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Public Facilities Inspection (permit fees set by the State of Tennessee)Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Swimming PoolsChattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
- Tennessee Comp. R. & Regs. 1200-23-01 — food service establishments, including the permit fee schedule effective 14 June 2026Tennessee Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-03
- Tennessee Department of Health — Environmental Health (food Contract Counties)Tennessee Department of Health · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-08
Other offices serving Hamilton County
The full permit list for this jurisdiction
Industry permit lists that include this agency
Tennessee jurisdictions
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