Safety is our priority, and Natural Gas is a safe alternative to other forms of energy.

Natural Gas Provides Energy for Your Home and Comfort for Your Family

The City of Tallahassee's Natural Gas Utility is proud of our 60+ year history of providing clean, safe, economical and reliable natural gas to residents and businesses in our growing service area. We safely provide natural gas energy through more than 965 miles of underground gas mains, which serve over 35,000 customers in Leon, Gadsden and Wakulla counties. Our highly trained staff works around the clock to ensure the integrity and dependability of our distribution system and to assist customers with energy conservation and cost savings through natural gas use.

The City’s Natural Gas Utility is the only public utility to earn the Gold Level System Operations Achievement Recognition (SOAR) Award from the American Public Gas Association (APGA) three times in a row. In 2019, APGA also recognized the City’s Natural Gas Utility for its continual excellence with the Public Gas System Achievement Award.

If You Smell Gas or Suspect an Issue

Natural gas is considered one of the safest utilities, and issues or leaks are very rare.

Natural gas is odorless, colorless, non-toxic and has no taste in its natural state. As a safety precaution, natural gas has a distinctive odor added so that you can immediately smell the smallest of leaks. It is 40 percent lighter than air, and when released into the atmosphere, it quickly dissipates. For more information on this odorant, you may request a scratch-and-sniff card by calling 850-891-5112.

If you are suspicious of a leak in a pipeline or above ground facility, including gas meters outside your home or business, leave the area immediately in an upwind direction. From a safe location, call 850-891-4968 or 911. Our staff is available 24 hours a day. Do not operate vehicles, mechanical equipment, cell phones, electronic devices or any item that could create a spark near a suspected leak. Do not strike a match or light a cigarette either. Do not operate any lights and do not attempt to locate leaks.

Call Before You Dig

Beneath the ground, there are miles of underground utility lines, like water, electricity and natural gas, that play a vital role in our everyday life. Protect yourself and others from unintentionally hitting underground utility lines by calling Sunshine 811 before you dig.

Safe digging is everyone's responsibility. Sunshine 811’s customer service call center is available weekdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1-800-432-4770. Sunshine 811 also offers safety guidelines at Sunshine811.com.

Severe Weather Safety

When severe weather or a natural disaster occurs, nothing is more important than the safety of you and your family.

Here are a few suggestions to help keep your natural gas appliances working correctly and efficiently during a severe weather event:

• Do not turn off the valve on the gas meter that supplies natural gas to your home or business yourself should you decide to evacuate. If the valve on the gas meter needs to be turned on or off, the City of Tallahassee or emergency staff will take care of that for you.
• Natural gas appliances and heating equipment must have a shut-off valve at the unit or, in the case of fire logs, six feet from the appliance. You can turn off the natural gas supply to each appliance or heating unit in your home or business.
• Before, during and after severe weather events, City crews will respond to natural gas emergencies, should they arise.
• After the severe weather has passed, customers that shut off the natural gas supply to their appliances or heating equipment can contact the City by calling 850-891-4968 when they need to turn the pilot lights back on.

Excess Flow Valves

In accordance with recent federal regulations, City of Tallahassee Natural Gas Utility residential and commercial customers may request the installation of an excess flow valve (EFV) on an existing natural gas service line.

An EFV is a safety device designed to significantly reduce the flow of natural gas in a service line that has been broken between the gas main and gas meter. Because the EFV restricts the flow of gas, it reduces the potential for property damage or injury due to an uncontrolled release of natural gas. Please note that such a device is not required for the normal, safe operation of your service line, but could help to mitigate the consequences of a severe service line failure. However, an EFV is not designed to protect against minor gas leaks on the service line or gas meter, or any leak on customer piping inside a home or business.

The following illustration shows some typical causes of broken service lines, including excavation damage. Remember – the best prevention against damaging your service line is to have all underground utility lines marked before digging. This free service is available at by calling 811.

Residential and small commercial customers whose total appliance load is no greater than 1,000 cubic feet per hour (approximately 1,000,000 BTU per hour) may request the City of Tallahassee Natural Gas Utility to install an EFV in their service line if one does not already exist. Technical requirements, such as pressure and volume, must be evaluated to determine whether an EFV will properly function on a given service line.

Because the service line must be excavated to install an EFV, you will be charged $750 to cover the installation costs. The Natural Gas Utility will be responsible for replacement or maintenance costs after installation.

If you are interested in considering an EFV installation in the service line to your home or business, or would like more information, please contact the City of Tallahassee's Natural Gas Utility at 850-891-5112. A representative will research the technical requirements of the EFV for your service line, answer questions you may have regarding EFVs, and can work with you to establish a mutually agreeable date for installation.