City of Madison, Indiana - Building and Design Division

City of Madison, Indiana

city

101 W. Main St., Madison, IN 47250

Required

Required

WHERE AND HOW. Building permits, inspections and contractor registration sit with the Building and Design Division of the Office of Planning, Preservation, and Design at City Hall, 101 W. Main St., Madison, 812-265-8324. The Division "issues building permits, performs building inspections, enforces land use ordinances, and enforces zoning regulations." Applications go through the City's Permit Portal; the application form says paper applications "will be accepted by the Office of Planning, Preservation, and Design; however, electronic submissions through our Permit Portal are preferred." Under 150.21(A) no building permit issues unless the application "is accompanied by a plat or sketch of the proposed location showing lot boundaries, and by plans and specifications showing the work to be done"; the form asks for the cost of construction and the business name of each contractor on the job, with a line for the roofing contractor, and it must be filed before work begins. IN THE MADISON HISTORIC DISTRICT, ASK ABOUT A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FIRST. The Unified Development Ordinance adopted March 17, 2026 provides in Section 2.19, the Historic District overlay, that construction or alteration of a primary or accessory structure within the district "shall comply with the Madison Historic District Design Guidelines and obtain a Certificate of Appropriateness prior to a building permit", and Section 7.10, on building permits, provides that a certificate "is required from the Madison Historic District Board of Review for all structures and demolition within the Madison Historic District prior to issuance of a building permit." The district's design guidelines (2022) list among routine maintenance actions that do not require a certificate "Ordinary maintenance, cleaning, or replacement" in kind, "including roofs, (using same materials, shape, size, design etc.) of a property feature consistent with the historic design Standards". THE TWO DOCUMENTS PULL DIFFERENT WAYS AND THIS RECORD DOES NOT SETTLE IT. Section 7.10 requires a certificate for all structures in the district before a building permit issues, while the guidelines exempt an in-kind roof replacement from a certificate outright. The Unified Development Ordinance was adopted March 17, 2026 and so postdates the 2022 guidelines, but Section 2.19 of that same ordinance directs compliance with those guidelines, which is where the exemption sits, so the later instrument does not plainly displace the earlier one. On any roof in the district ask the City's Historic Preservationist, who processes certificate applications, whether the job needs one before ordering material. THE DISTRICT'S ROOFING RULES apply inside the district only; they sit in the Roofs section of the guidelines for historic properties and are not a citywide code. Guideline 15.4 provides that "New roofing materials should be compatible with either the existing or original roofing material", that "Cedar shake roofs are not appropriate for the historic district due to their lack of durability and susceptibility to damage from storms", and that "Asphalt or fiberglass-asphalt shingles as well as metal standing seam are acceptable substitutes for wood shingles"; it adds that "Galvanized standing-seam with a large ridge, exposed fastener and snap lock roofs are not appropriate in the historic district", asks for metal roof seams no more than one and a half inches in profile and pan widths between sixteen and eighteen inches, allows snap-lock roofs that follow those limits, and provides that "Any distinctive patterns of shingles or slates shall be retained and/or replicated exactly." Guideline 15.9 provides that ridge vents, where needed, "shall be of the low-profile type". INSPECTIONS, STOP WORK AND PENALTIES. After a permit issues the Building Inspector makes the inspections "as are necessary" under 150.36(A), and may enter a building at reasonable times on presenting credentials under 150.37. Under 150.38 the Building Inspector or Fire Inspector may order work being done contrary to the code stopped by written notice, and it stays stopped until they authorize it to proceed. A violation is a class A infraction with a judgment of not more than $2,500 under 150.99(A). Appeals from an order of the Building Inspector go first to the Board of Zoning Appeals and then to the state Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission under 150.50. TEAR-OFF IS NOT FILL: 150.84(B)(1) bars construction and demolition debris, shingles included, from use as fill material in the city. FLOOD PLAIN: under 150.22(C) an application for major repairs within the flood plain area having special flood hazards is reviewed for materials and equipment resistant to flood damage.

THE STATE'S RESIDENTIAL CODE, AND MADISON NAMES THE SAME MODEL CODE ITSELF. One- and two-family dwellings in Madison are built to the 2020 Indiana Residential Code, 675 IAC 14-4.4. Its first section provides that "That certain document being titled the 2018 International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings, first printing August 2017, published by the International Code Council ... is hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set out in this rule save and except those revisions made in this rule" and that "This rule shall be known as the 2020 Indiana Residential Code." The rule was filed November 26, 2019 and readopted by a filing of November 18, 2025. WHAT MADISON'S OWN CODE SAYS. Section 150.06(A) of the Building Code of the City of Madison provides that "Building rules of the Indiana Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission as set out in the following Articles of Title 675 of the Indiana Administrative Code are hereby incorporated by reference in this code and shall include later amendments to those Articles as the same are published in the Indiana Register or the Indiana Administrative Code with effective dates as fixed therein", and then lists Articles 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20. The titles it prints under Article 14, "One and Two Family Dwelling Codes", are the "Council of American Building Officials One and Two Family Dwelling Code", the "CABO One and Two Family Dwelling Code; Amendments" and the "Standard for Permanent Installation of Manufactured Homes". The section's history note records no amendment since Ordinance 4-1988, passed May 17, 1988. The text of those older rules was not read for this record; the state's own table of contents for Article 14 marks its original one- and two-family code and the CABO amendment rule as repealed, and the newest rule in the article is 675 IAC 14-4.4. The section adopts the article together with its later amendments, which reaches 675 IAC 14-4.4, and Indiana law reads a local adoption the same way: IC 22-13-2-3(b) provides that a local reference to the commission's rules by citation to the Indiana Administrative Code "shall be construed to include all amendments as of the date that the reference is written and any later amendments to that provision, unless accompanied by a reference to a specific edition or supplement to the Indiana Administrative Code." THE CITY'S OWN STATEMENT. The Building and Design Division's page lists the code books available for review at City Hall, and its residential entry is the "2018 International Residential Code", the model code the state rule incorporates; the same list names the 2012 International Building Code, the 2012 International Fire Code and the 2015 International Energy Conservation Code. NO LOCAL ROOFING CODE. The Building Code of the City of Madison, Chapter 150 of the City Code in the 2025 S-35 codification, was read section by section and contains no roof-covering provision, and IC 22-13-2-3(c) provides that "A city, town, or county may not adopt an ordinance that conflicts with or includes more stringent or detailed requirements than the commission's rules." The local chapter's scope, in its own words at 150.03: "The provisions of this code apply to the construction, alterations, repair, use, occupancy, and addition to all buildings and structures, other than industrialized building systems or mobile structures certified under IC 22-15-4, in the city." Variances are a state matter: 150.35 closes "Any variance from adopted building rules are subject to approval under IC 22-13-2-7(b)." One vocabulary point: "Class 2" in Indiana is a structure class, broadly one- and two-family dwellings, and has nothing to do with a fire or impact class of roof covering.

Required — THE STATE RULE REQUIRES IT ON A SHINGLE ROOF, and the City cannot vary it. The Indiana State Building Commissioner's guidance on ice/water shield and metal drip edge in Class 2 construction with asphalt shingles, published by the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, sets out Section R905.2.8.5 as the 2020 Indiana Residential Code carries it, and the section opens: "A drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs." The same section requires adjacent segments to overlap by at least 2 inches, the drip edge to extend at least a quarter inch (6.4 mm) below the roof sheathing and at least 2 inches back onto the roof deck, and mechanical fastening at no more than 12 inches on center, and it closes: "Underlayment shall be installed over the drip edge along eaves and under the drip edge along rake edges." The 2020 Indiana Residential Code amends Section R905.2.8 only by deleting the word "approved" and does not touch R905.2.8.5, so the section applies as published. Madison's Building Code chapter adds nothing on drip edge, and IC 22-13-2-3(c) bars a city from an ordinance more stringent or detailed than the state rules. About drip edge

Not required — NOT REQUIRED BY THE TABLE IN JEFFERSON COUNTY, BUT THE SHINGLE MANUFACTURER CAN STILL REQUIRE ONE. Indiana deletes the model climatic table and substitutes its own, one row per county: 675 IAC 14-4.4-5 directs "Delete TABLE R301.2(1) and the corresponding footnotes and substitute to read as follows". Row 39 is Jefferson, and it carries "No" in the column headed "Ice Shield Underlayment Required". Twenty-seven of the ninety-two county rows carry "Yes" in that column, and Jefferson is not one of them. The rest of the Jefferson row gives wind speed 115 mph, seismic design category B, ground snow 20 psf, foundation depth 24 inches, a winter design temperature of 9 degrees F and Severe weathering. Section R905.1.2, as the State Building Commissioner's ice/water shield and drip edge guidance sets it out, calls for an ice barrier "In areas where there has been a history of ice forming along the eaves causing a backup of water as designated in Table R301.2(1)", so the table decides it. THE MANUFACTURER'S INSTRUCTIONS ARE THE SECOND TEST, and the same guidance says so in terms: Sections R903.1, R904.1 and R905.1 require roofing materials to be installed in accordance with the manufacturer's installation instructions, and "there are specific counties in which it is always required (per Table R301.2(1)), and specific counties in which it is required only when the roofing manufacturer's written installation instructions require it (per Sections R903.1, R904.1 and R905.1)." Jefferson County is in the second group, so read the shingle manufacturer's published instructions for the product on the job: if they call for an ice barrier, the code requires it. Madison's Building Code chapter contains no ice barrier or underlayment provision, and IC 22-13-2-3(c) bars a city from adding one. About ice & water barrier

Not required — NO ROOF STAGE IS NAMED IN ANY INSTRUMENT, BUT THE INSPECTOR DECIDES WHAT IS INSPECTED. Section 150.36(A) of the City Code provides that after a building permit issues "the Building Inspector shall make, or shall cause to be made, inspections of the work being done as are necessary to insure full compliance with the provisions of this code and the terms of the permit", and that reinspections of work found incomplete or not ready are charged a reinspection fee, $100 on the fee schedule. Chapter 150 was read section by section and sets out no list of inspection stages for any kind of work. The state rule sets none either: the 2020 Indiana Residential Code replaces the model code's administrative Sections R101 through R107 with its own and deletes Sections R108 through R114 "in their entirety without substitution". So no mid-roof or deck inspection is required by any instrument, but because 150.36 leaves the inspections to the Building Inspector, ask when the permit issues whether the deck is to be seen before it is covered. The Office of Planning, Preservation, and Design is on 812-265-8324.

Not required — No impact-resistance requirement applies in Madison. The 2020 Indiana Residential Code, 675 IAC 14-4.4, makes four amendments to the model code's roofing chapter and none concerns impact: it deletes the last sentence of Section R902.4 on rooftop-mounted photovoltaic panel systems, deletes the words "approved" from Section R905.2.6 on asphalt shingle attachment, deletes the word "approved" from Section R905.2.8 on flashing, and deletes the word "printed" from Section R905.2.8.4 on other flashing. Neither that rule nor the Building Code of the City of Madison, Chapter 150 of the City Code, read section by section, imposes a UL 2218, Class 4 or FM 4473 impact rating on a roof covering. Madison could not add one: IC 22-13-2-3(c) bars a city, town or county from an ordinance that conflicts with or includes more stringent or detailed requirements than the state rules, and IC 22-13-2-3(a)(2) gives those rules precedence over any local ordinance on the same subject. The Madison Historic District design guidelines steer roofing materials inside the district but set no impact rating either. Two things that get mistaken for an impact mandate in Indiana: "Class 2", which is the state's structure class for one- and two-family dwellings rather than a rating of the roof covering, and an insurer's premium discount for an impact-rated shingle, which is a private contract term and not a code requirement.

$500 OF WORK, AND A RE-ROOF WILL ALMOST ALWAYS BE OVER IT. Section 150.20 of the City Code, headed "Permit required", provides: "A permit shall be obtained before beginning construction, alteration, or repair of any building or structure, the cost of which exceeds $500, using forms furnished by the Building Inspector. All permits shall be issued by the Building Inspector, and all fees required by this code shall be paid to the City Plan Commission." The chapter's scope provision, 150.03, reaches "the construction, alterations, repair, use, occupancy, and addition to all buildings and structures" in the city, excepting only industrialized building systems and mobile structures certified under IC 22-15-4. Chapter 150 was read section by section, and the $500 cost line is the only permit threshold in it: there is no list of exempt work and no roofing carve-out. So a roof repair or re-roof costing more than $500 needs a permit before work starts, and a small repair under that figure does not. THE FEE SCHEDULE NAMES ROOFING. Section 150.24(B) sets residential building permit fees, and its lines include "Roofing structure replacement" at $50 and "New or remodel" at "$50 + $0.10 per sq. ft. (affected by project)"; the City's building permit application prints a residential application fee of $50.00 with "+ $0.10 per sq ft" for a residential remodel. The schedule does not define a roofing structure replacement, so confirm with the office which line a covering-only re-roof is charged under before quoting the fee. A reinspection is $100. THE CONTRACTOR MUST BE REGISTERED FIRST, under a separate test in 150.07 set at more than 100 square feet or more than $500 in cost to the owner; see the registration answer. IN THE HISTORIC DISTRICT a Certificate of Appropriateness can be needed before the building permit; see the process note.

115 mph. Indiana replaces the model Table R301.2(1) with its own county-by-county table at 675 IAC 14-4.4-5, and the Jefferson County row, row 39, gives 115 in the column headed "Wind Speed", in miles per hour. All ninety-two county rows carry the same figure, so 115 mph is a statewide Indiana number. The same row gives seismic design category B, ground snow 20 psf, a 24 inch foundation depth, a winter design temperature of 9 degrees F and Severe weathering. Madison's Building Code chapter sets no design criteria, and IC 22-13-2-3(c) bars a city from an ordinance more stringent or detailed than the state rules. Indiana amends the exposure category section, R301.2.1.4, at 675 IAC 14-4.4-4, only in its fourth sentence, which as amended provides that on a subdivision or master-planned site the exposure category "for an individual structure shall be based on the site conditions that will exist at the time when all adjacent structures on the site have been constructed", where construction in that section is expected to begin within 2 years. Settle the exposure category for the particular site with the Building Inspector rather than assuming one.

NO CITY RULE AND NO STATE AMENDMENT, SO THE BASE CODE APPLIES UNMODIFIED. Residential roofing in Madison runs on the 2020 Indiana Residential Code, 675 IAC 14-4.4, which incorporates the 2018 International Residential Code. The state rule contains no amendment to the International Residential Code reroofing section, Section R908, which does not appear in it at any point, and its only amendments anywhere in the roof assemblies chapter delete the word "approved" from an asphalt-shingle attachment section and from a flashing section, delete the word "printed" from another flashing section, and delete the last sentence of the rooftop photovoltaic section. Madison adds nothing of its own: the Building Code of the City of Madison, Chapter 150 of the City Code, was read section by section and contains no roof-covering provision of any kind, and IC 22-13-2-3(c) bars a city, town or county from adopting an ordinance that conflicts with or includes more stringent or detailed requirements than the state rules. So the answer on a Madison job is the base International Residential Code rule on recovering an existing roof, in the 2018 edition, unchanged by Indiana and unchanged by the City. Base-code rule, read at 2018 International Residential Code Section R908.3.1.1, Roof recover not allowed, and quoted here rather than left behind the ICC paywall: a roof recover "shall not be permitted" where "the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." One existing layer may be recovered; a second existing layer means a tear-off to the deck.

THE STATE SETS IT, AND MADISON ADDS NOTHING. The 2020 Indiana Residential Code, 675 IAC 14-4.4, makes one amendment to the model code's roof sheathing provisions. It is at 675 IAC 14-4.4-82, headed "Section R803.2.1; identification and grade", and it reads in full: "Delete the words 'or certificate of inspection issued by an approved agency' from the text of SECTION R803.2.1 without substitution." So sheathing panels on a Madison job are identified by their grade mark, and the model code's alternative route of a certificate of inspection issued by an approved agency is gone. Everything else in SECTION R803 applies as the 2018 International Residential Code publishes it, unamended by Indiana. NO LOCAL RULE, ON A FULL READ. The Building Code of the City of Madison, Chapter 150 of the City Code, was read section by section, all thirty-five sections of it, and the words sheathing, decking and R803 do not appear in it once. The City could not add a rule of its own in any event: IC 22-13-2-3(c) provides that "A city, town, or county may not adopt an ordinance that conflicts with or includes more stringent or detailed requirements than the commission's rules." ONE PRACTICAL POINT ON A TEAR-OFF. No instrument names a deck or mid-roof inspection stage in Madison, and Section 150.36(A) leaves it to the Building Inspector to make the inspections that are necessary, so if a tear-off exposes rotten or delaminated decking there is no scheduled visit at which it will be seen. Ask when the permit issues whether the deck is to be looked at before it is covered. The Office of Planning, Preservation, and Design is on 812-265-8324.

7.00% statewide, with no county or city add-on in Madison or Jefferson County. Indiana levies a single state sales tax rate; the Department of Revenue's page on county-level taxes states "The sales tax for the entire State of Indiana is 7%." WHO PAYS IT DEPENDS ON THE SHAPE OF THE CONTRACT. Indiana Department of Revenue Sales Tax Information Bulletin #60 (March 2024) names roofing among its examples of contractors and then splits on contract form. A "Time and Material Contract" is "a contract in which the cost of construction material and the cost of labor or other charges are stated separately"; a contractor working under one is a retail merchant selling the material it incorporates into real property, and "must be registered with the department and collect sales tax on the material portion of their contracts", and may buy that material exempt for resale on its own exemption certificate. A contractor on any other form, such as a lump sum contract, is not reselling the material: such contractors "will not charge their customers sales tax" and instead pay sales tax when they buy the material or self-assess use tax. On labor the bulletin notes that "Installation charges separately stated on an invoice are not included in gross retail income." The bulletin describes itself as nontechnical guidance, and information in it that is inconsistent with the law "is not binding on either the department or the taxpayer", so settle your own contract form with an accountant.