Derry Township (Westmoreland County) - Building Code Official

Township of Derry, Pennsylvania (Westmoreland County)

city

5321 Route 982, Derry, PA 15627

Required

Derry Township's pages do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Township's information page (read October 7, 2026) says "Permits are required for, but not limited to, the following:" and lists "Building construction or alteration" with no roof words, and says "Please call the Township with any questions you may have regarding what types of construction projects require a building permit." The permit packet's list headed "The following residential items will require a permit under the Uniform Construction Code (UCC)" names new homes, additions, "Alterations to existing homes that require a structural change or change to the means of egress" and other items, and names no roof work; the packet's list of required attachments names no roof work either. Township Ordinance Number 114 is not published online: the Township's website posts no ordinances, and the Township of Derry code on eCode360 is that of Derry Township, Dauphin County, not this Township; so this record has not read the Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance or any other Township ordinance on building permits. 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 Derry Township; ask the Township at 724-694-8835 before starting. The packet says "No work shall begin on any project until the application is approved and permit is issued and paid for. Work started prior may result in the doubling of the building permit fee." The Township office hours given in the packet are 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Read for this answer: the Township's home, information, directory and Forms pages, and the ten-page Building Permit Application packet posted on the Forms page, in full. The Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance and any other Township ordinance on building permits could not be read.

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, Derry Township administers the code itself: the Township's information page says "Derry Township opted-in to the Uniform Construction Code (Act 45) on July 1st of 2004" and that "Building Permits for commercial and residential projects are issued by Building Code Official," and the permit packet posted on the Township's Forms page says "Applications for a permit required by the UCC shall be submitted to the Township building as per Township Ordinance Number 114" and refers questions to American Building Inspection Services, Inc., of Latrobe. The Township building is at 5321 Route 982, Derry. Township Ordinance Number 114 is not published online: the Township's website posts no ordinances, and the Township of Derry code on eCode360 is that of Derry Township, Dauphin County, not this Township; so this record has not read the Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance or any other Township ordinance on building permits. The permit packet says "The 2009 International Building Codes are available from the International Code Council" and lists the "International Residential Code 2009" among the codes the State adopts, and the Township's pages name no later edition; the text above is the 2021 edition's, this record has not read the 2009 edition's text, and it does not decide which edition the Township applies.

Derry Township's pages do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Township's information page (read October 7, 2026) says "Permits are required for, but not limited to, the following:" and lists "Building construction or alteration" with no roof words, and says "Please call the Township with any questions you may have regarding what types of construction projects require a building permit." The permit packet's list headed "The following residential items will require a permit under the Uniform Construction Code (UCC)" names new homes, additions, "Alterations to existing homes that require a structural change or change to the means of egress" and other items, and names no roof work; the packet's list of required attachments names no roof work either. Township Ordinance Number 114 is not published online: the Township's website posts no ordinances, and the Township of Derry code on eCode360 is that of Derry Township, Dauphin County, not this Township; so this record has not read the Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance or any other Township ordinance on building permits. 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 Derry 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, Derry Township administers the code itself: the Township's information page says "Derry Township opted-in to the Uniform Construction Code (Act 45) on July 1st of 2004" and that "Building Permits for commercial and residential projects are issued by Building Code Official," and the permit packet posted on the Township's Forms page says "Applications for a permit required by the UCC shall be submitted to the Township building as per Township Ordinance Number 114" and refers questions to American Building Inspection Services, Inc., of Latrobe. The Township building is at 5321 Route 982, Derry. 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, Derry Township administers the code itself: the Township's information page says "Derry Township opted-in to the Uniform Construction Code (Act 45) on July 1st of 2004" and that "Building Permits for commercial and residential projects are issued by Building Code Official," and the permit packet posted on the Township's Forms page says "Applications for a permit required by the UCC shall be submitted to the Township building as per Township Ordinance Number 114" and refers questions to American Building Inspection Services, Inc., of Latrobe. The Township building is at 5321 Route 982, Derry. Township Ordinance Number 114 is not published online: the Township's website posts no ordinances, and the Township of Derry code on eCode360 is that of Derry Township, Dauphin County, not this Township; so this record has not read the Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance or any other Township ordinance on building permits. The Township's pages say nothing on roof layers. The permit packet says "The 2009 International Building Codes are available from the International Code Council" and lists the "International Residential Code 2009" among the codes the State adopts, and the Township's pages name no later edition; the text above is the 2021 edition's, and this record has not read the 2009 edition's 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, Derry Township administers the code itself: the Township's information page says "Derry Township opted-in to the Uniform Construction Code (Act 45) on July 1st of 2004" and that "Building Permits for commercial and residential projects are issued by Building Code Official," and the permit packet posted on the Township's Forms page says "Applications for a permit required by the UCC shall be submitted to the Township building as per Township Ordinance Number 114" and refers questions to American Building Inspection Services, Inc., of Latrobe. The Township building is at 5321 Route 982, Derry. Township Ordinance Number 114 is not published online: the Township's website posts no ordinances, and the Township of Derry code on eCode360 is that of Derry Township, Dauphin County, not this Township; so this record has not read the Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance or any other Township ordinance on building permits. The Township's pages draw no line for roof sheathing. The permit packet says "The 2009 International Building Codes are available from the International Code Council" and lists the "International Residential Code 2009" among the codes the State adopts, and the Township's pages name no later edition; the text above is the 2021 edition's, and this record has not read the 2009 edition's 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. Derry Township is in Westmoreland County. The Township's pages and permit packet say nothing on sales tax.