Adams Township - Building & Zoning

Township of Adams, Pennsylvania (Butler County)

city

690 Valencia Road, Mars, PA 16046

Required

Adams Township's code and pages do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. Chapter 74, Article I of the Township Code (Ord. No. 9, February 2, 1961) says "it shall be unlawful to construct, reconstruct or alter any building within the limits of the Township of Adams, unless the rules, regulations and requirements of this article have been complied with," and "No permit to erect, construct, reconstruct or alter any building shall be granted unless said plans, specifications and plot plan are in conformity with such ordinances"; Article II (1993) adopts the "CABO One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code, 1992 Edition," and Article III (1995) the "BOCA National Building Code, 12th Edition, 1993." Section 86-5 A keeps building code ordinances adopted on or before July 1, 1999 "which equal or exceed the requirements of the code" in force. None of these names roof work; the CABO and BOCA codes themselves, whose permit sections would bear on repairs, are on file at the Township and were not read; and this record does not decide whether a house reroof is altering a building under Article I or how Section 86-5 A bears on these articles. Section 86-2.1 (2009) exempts from permits only "One-story detached accessory structures, provided that the floor area does not exceed 200 square feet." The Township's Permits page and its 2026 Building Permit Application name no roof work, and its fee schedule, Resolution No. 2026-6 (April 13, 2026), sets residential permit fees "based on square footage as per the Freedom Systems Permit Program dated April 2026," a document the Township has not published, and has no roofing line of its own. Under state law, Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6) list "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and "Repairs to residential buildings" among work the Act does not apply to, "except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503," and 34 Pa. Code 403.62(c) says "A permit is not required for the exceptions listed in § 403.1(b) (relating to scope) and the following, if the work does not violate a law or ordinance." This record does not state whether a permit is required for a house reroof in Adams Township; ask the Township's Building & Zoning office at 724-625-1827 before starting. The office is open 7:30am to 4:00pm, Monday through Friday. Read for this answer: Chapter 86 of the Township Code, Construction Code, Uniform (Sections 86-1 to 86-6), and Chapter 74, Building Construction (Articles I to III), in full; Chapter 7, Code Enforcement; every page of searches of the whole Township Code for "roof" and "reroofing," which found no permit provision naming roof work; the Township's Permits, Code Enforcement and Ordinances/Resolutions pages; its 2026 Building Permit Application and Code Inspection Schedule; and Resolution No. 2026-6 in full.

The 2021 International Residential Code, as adopted by the State in the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (UCC). 34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7) adopts "The 'International Residential Code of 2021,' except that:" followed by the State's list of exclusions and modifications, effective January 1, 2026 (55 Pa.B. 7701). None of the State's changes touches Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies, or Section R803, Roof Sheathing, so those apply as the International Code Council publishes them. Work on existing buildings is also pointed to the State's existing-building code: "The repair, alteration, change of occupancy, addition and relocation of existing buildings must comply with Chapter 34 of the 'International Building Code of 2021' or with the 'International Existing Building Code of 2021'" (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)). The UCC is the minimum everywhere in the state: "no municipality may propose or enact any ordinance which is less than the minimum requirement of the Uniform Construction Code" (Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, section 503(b)). The Act also lists work it "shall not apply to", including "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" or to "Repairs to residential buildings," in each case "except as might be required by ordinances" kept in force under section 303(b)(1) or adopted under section 503 (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6); 34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)). The Act defines a repair as "The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose of its maintenance." So whether the code's roofing rules reach a given house reroof depends on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Adams Township administers the code through its own Building & Zoning office: Section 86-1 of the Township Code says "This Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," Chapter 7 makes the Township's Code Enforcement Officer "the building official" of the Township, and the Township's Permits page posts its own Building Permit Application and directs commercial projects to file also with Professional Code Services, Inc., Gibsonia; the office is at 690 Valencia Road, Mars. Section 86-2 adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the municipal building code, removes the State's permit exemption for low uncovered decks and adds four appendices, none about roofs. The Township's Permits page says "The current Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (PA UCC) follows the 2021 edition of The International Code Council Family of Codes," while Chapter 74 of the Township Code adopts the CABO One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code, 1992 Edition, and the BOCA National Building Code, 1993, which Section 86-5 A keeps in force where they equal or exceed the Uniform Construction Code; this record has not read the CABO or BOCA text and does not decide which text the Township applies to roof work.

Not required — No impact-resistance requirement under state law. The State's adoption of the 2021 International Residential Code (34 Pa. Code 403.21) contains no hail or impact rule, and it makes no change to the code's roof assemblies chapter, which itself has no UL 2218, Class 4 or hail-impact requirement for roof coverings. A municipality could add one only by an ordinance that equals or exceeds the Uniform Construction Code under Act 45 section 503, filed with the Department of Labor and Industry; none of the filings on the Department's register of municipal code change ordinances mentions hail or impact resistance. An owner may still choose an impact-rated roof covering. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Adams Township administers the code through its own Building & Zoning office: Section 86-1 of the Township Code says "This Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," Chapter 7 makes the Township's Code Enforcement Officer "the building official" of the Township, and the Township's Permits page posts its own Building Permit Application and directs commercial projects to file also with Professional Code Services, Inc., Gibsonia; the office is at 690 Valencia Road, Mars. Chapters 74 and 86 of the Township Code, as codified, and the Township's permit pages set no UL 2218, Class 4 or hail-impact requirement; the Township's Permits page names the 2021 edition, and this record has not read the CABO 1992 or BOCA 1993 text that Chapter 74 adopts.

Adams Township's code and pages do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. Chapter 74, Article I of the Township Code (Ord. No. 9, February 2, 1961) says "it shall be unlawful to construct, reconstruct or alter any building within the limits of the Township of Adams, unless the rules, regulations and requirements of this article have been complied with," and "No permit to erect, construct, reconstruct or alter any building shall be granted unless said plans, specifications and plot plan are in conformity with such ordinances"; Article II (1993) adopts the "CABO One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code, 1992 Edition," and Article III (1995) the "BOCA National Building Code, 12th Edition, 1993." Section 86-5 A keeps building code ordinances adopted on or before July 1, 1999 "which equal or exceed the requirements of the code" in force. None of these names roof work; the CABO and BOCA codes themselves, whose permit sections would bear on repairs, are on file at the Township and were not read; and this record does not decide whether a house reroof is altering a building under Article I or how Section 86-5 A bears on these articles. Section 86-2.1 (2009) exempts from permits only "One-story detached accessory structures, provided that the floor area does not exceed 200 square feet." The Township's Permits page and its 2026 Building Permit Application name no roof work, and its fee schedule, Resolution No. 2026-6 (April 13, 2026), sets residential permit fees "based on square footage as per the Freedom Systems Permit Program dated April 2026," a document the Township has not published, and has no roofing line of its own. Under state law, Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6) list "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and "Repairs to residential buildings" among work the Act does not apply to, "except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503," and 34 Pa. Code 403.62(c) says "A permit is not required for the exceptions listed in § 403.1(b) (relating to scope) and the following, if the work does not violate a law or ordinance." This record does not state whether a permit is required for a house reroof in Adams Township. State law sets no square-footage or percentage threshold for roof work; any threshold is set locally. The Uniform Construction Code "does not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as required by ordinances in effect under sections 303(b)(1) or 503 of the act" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as required by ordinances in effect under sections 303(b)(1) and 503 of the act" (34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)), and "A permit is not required for the exceptions listed in § 403.1(b) (relating to scope) and the following, if the work does not violate a law or ordinance" (34 Pa. Code 403.62(c)). For houses the regulation adds: "An ordinary repair does not require a permit." Its list of work that is not an ordinary repair names cutting away a load-bearing wall, "The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load-bearing support," changes to a required means of egress, and new or relocated piping, wiring or mechanical work (34 Pa. Code 403.62(d)); roofing is not named. A municipality may require more: under Act 45 section 503(c) it "may enact ordinances pursuant to this section which adopt additional code requirements for alterations or repairs to residential buildings," after a public hearing and after filing the proposed ordinance with the Department of Labor and Industry. These rules concern a "Residential building," which the regulation defines as "Detached one-family and two-family dwellings and townhouses which are not more than three stories above grade plane in height with a separate means of egress and their accessory structures" (34 Pa. Code 401.1). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Adams Township administers the code through its own Building & Zoning office: Section 86-1 of the Township Code says "This Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," Chapter 7 makes the Township's Code Enforcement Officer "the building official" of the Township, and the Township's Permits page posts its own Building Permit Application and directs commercial projects to file also with Professional Code Services, Inc., Gibsonia; the office is at 690 Valencia Road, Mars. No Township text read for this record sets an area or cost threshold for roof work.

Two layers at most where the state code reaches the job. Pennsylvania adopts the 2021 International Residential Code without changing its reroofing section, R908 (34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7); the State's list of changes names no Chapter 9 section). Section R908.3.1.1 says "A roof recover shall not be permitted where any of the following conditions occur," and the third condition is "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." So one existing layer may be covered once, and a roof that already has two layers is torn off to the deck. The same section also bars a recover "Where the existing roof or roof covering is water soaked or has deteriorated to the point that the existing roof or roof covering is not adequate as a base for additional roofing" and "Where the existing roof covering is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile." The existing-building code the State also adopts, the 2021 International Existing Building Code (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)), carries the same three conditions in Section 705.2.1.1. These rules bind work the Uniform Construction Code reaches. The Act does not apply to "Repairs to residential buildings" or to alterations that make no structural change, "except as might be required by ordinances" (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6)), so whether R908 binds a particular house reroof turns on that exclusion and on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Adams Township administers the code through its own Building & Zoning office: Section 86-1 of the Township Code says "This Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," Chapter 7 makes the Township's Code Enforcement Officer "the building official" of the Township, and the Township's Permits page posts its own Building Permit Application and directs commercial projects to file also with Professional Code Services, Inc., Gibsonia; the office is at 690 Valencia Road, Mars. Chapter 86 of the Township Code changes nothing in the code's reroofing provisions, and no ordinance reaching residential reroofing was found in the chapters read. The Township's Permits page says "The current Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (PA UCC) follows the 2021 edition of The International Code Council Family of Codes," while Chapter 74 of the Township Code adopts the CABO One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code, 1992 Edition, and the BOCA National Building Code, 1993, which Section 86-5 A keeps in force where they equal or exceed the Uniform Construction Code; the text above is the 2021 edition's, and this record has not read the CABO or BOCA reroofing text.

State rules from the base code, where the state code reaches the job. Pennsylvania adopts the 2021 International Residential Code without changing Section R803, Roof Sheathing (34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7); the State's changes to Chapter 8 are to ridge framing and attic ventilation). Lumber roof sheathing follows Table R803.1: over rafters or beams 24 inches apart it must be at least 5/8 inch net thick. Wood structural panels "shall be identified for grade, bond classification and performance category by a grade mark or certificate of inspection issued by an approved agency," and their spans "shall not exceed the values set forth in Table R503.2.1.1(1) or APA E30." For shingles, "Asphalt shingles shall be fastened to solidly sheathed decks" (R905.2.1), and on any reroof "The structural roof components shall be capable of supporting the roof covering system and the material and equipment loads that will be encountered during installation of the roof covering system" (R908.2). These rules bind work the Uniform Construction Code reaches; the Act does not apply to "Repairs to residential buildings" or to alterations that make no structural change, "except as might be required by ordinances" (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6)). Act 45 section 104(b)(5) excludes alterations "which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and says only that "a structural change does not include a minor framing change needed to replace existing windows or doors"; 34 Pa. Code 403.62(d)(2) lists "The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load-bearing support" as not an ordinary repair. Neither names roof sheathing; this record does not decide whether replacing it is either. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Adams Township administers the code through its own Building & Zoning office: Section 86-1 of the Township Code says "This Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," Chapter 7 makes the Township's Code Enforcement Officer "the building official" of the Township, and the Township's Permits page posts its own Building Permit Application and directs commercial projects to file also with Professional Code Services, Inc., Gibsonia; the office is at 690 Valencia Road, Mars. Chapter 86 of the Township Code changes nothing in the code's roof sheathing provisions. The Township's Permits page says "The current Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (PA UCC) follows the 2021 edition of The International Code Council Family of Codes," while Chapter 74 of the Township Code adopts the CABO One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code, 1992 Edition, and the BOCA National Building Code, 1993, which Section 86-5 A keeps in force where they equal or exceed the Uniform Construction Code; the text above is the 2021 edition's, and this record has not read the CABO or BOCA sheathing text.

6% Pennsylvania sales and use tax, with a local tax added on purchases made in Allegheny County (1%) and Philadelphia (2%). On a reroof the roofer pays the tax on the materials and does not add it to the homeowner's bill. The Department of Revenue says: "The Pennsylvania sales tax rate is 6 percent. By law, a 1 percent local tax is added to purchases made in Allegheny County, and 2 percent local tax is added to purchases made in Philadelphia." Roof work is a construction activity: the rule's list of items "presumed to become a permanent part of real estate" includes "Roofing (repairs)" (61 Pa. Code 31.11). For construction activities, "A contractor shall pay tax upon the purchase price ... of all property, including materials, equipment, components and supplies, which he furnishes and installs" (61 Pa. Code 31.12(a)(1)), and the rule's example says the contractor "does not charge sales tax on this transaction to his customer. The contractor may include the tax he must pay in his bid proposal but not as a separately stated item." Apart from limited exceptions set out in the rule, the same holds on jobs for tax-exempt owners: "a contractor erecting a building, repairing a roof, replacing a door for a governmental agency, ... school district, charitable or religious organization, and the like, shall pay tax upon the property which he consumes" (61 Pa. Code 31.13(a)). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Adams Township is in Butler County. The Township's permit pages and fee schedule say nothing on sales tax.