Permitting Authorities / Marquette County - Building Codes Department (Resource Management/Development)
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Marquette County, MI?
Adopted code
Marquette County - Building Codes Department (Resource Management/Development)
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Marquette County, MI, issued by Marquette County - Building Codes Department (Resource Management/Development). Marquette County's Resource Management/Development Department "issues building permits for all of Marquette County." The department has published nothing specific to roof work: its list headed "Permits are required for" names "All new construction - buildings, additions, alterations, remodeling," demolition, a change of use and moving a building, and does not mention roofing, and neither its 2026 residential permit packet nor its fee schedule has a roofing line. With the department silent on reroofs, the state's general permit rule applies: "before construction of a building or structure, the owner, or the owner's builder, architect, engineer, or agent, shall submit an application in writing to the appropriate enforcing agency for a building permit." The same section says "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," without defining ordinary repairs, and the department has published nothing applying that relief to roof work. The department says "the secretarial staff cannot answer technical questions. You must speak with an inspector!" Inspectors take calls from 8:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 to 5:00 p.m.; the office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Applications go by email to [email protected], or by mail or in person at 234 West Baraga Avenue, Marquette, and "Your application must be received and your permit ISSUED before starting work." Zoning comes first: "Zoning approval must be obtained from them in writing before a permit can be issued." A contractor's "license number, insurance number, name, and so on must be on the application." The fee schedule effective January 1, 2026 prices "All Other Construction" by "Total Cost of Construction or Improvement": "$165 (Includes Application Fee of $165)" up to $1,000, then "$165 + $11.68/$1,000 over $1,000" up to $10,000 and "$271 + $2.49/$1,000 over $10,000" up to $100,000. It also says "AN ADMINISTRATIVE FEE WILL BE ASSESSED FOR WORK STARTED BEFORE A PERMIT IS OBTAINED". Inspections are booked through the front office at 906-225-8180 with the permit number.
Roof code checklist: Marquette County, MI
Each row comes from the sourced record on this page; full wording is in the table below. "Not published" means no official source for that item was found when the record was last verified.
Jurisdiction
Marquette County, Michigan
Address
234 West Baraga Avenue (County Courthouse), Marquette, MI 49855
Contact
- url: https://www.co.marquette.mi.us/departments/building_codes/index.php
- phone: 906-225-8180
- email: [email protected]
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Permit process note
Marquette County's Resource Management/Development Department "issues building permits for all of Marquette County." The department has published nothing specific to roof work: its list headed "Permits are required for" names "All new construction - buildings, additions, alterations, remodeling," demolition, a change of use and moving a building, and does not mention roofing, and neither its 2026 residential permit packet nor its fee schedule has a roofing line. With the department silent on reroofs, the state's general permit rule applies: "before construction of a building or structure, the owner, or the owner's builder, architect, engineer, or agent, shall submit an application in writing to the appropriate enforcing agency for a building permit." The same section says "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," without defining ordinary repairs, and the department has published nothing applying that relief to roof work. The department says "the secretarial staff cannot answer technical questions. You must speak with an inspector!" Inspectors take calls from 8:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 to 5:00 p.m.; the office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Applications go by email to
[email protected], or by mail or in person at 234 West Baraga Avenue, Marquette, and "Your application must be received and your permit ISSUED before starting work." Zoning comes first: "Zoning approval must be obtained from them in writing before a permit can be issued." A contractor's "license number, insurance number, name, and so on must be on the application." The fee schedule effective January 1, 2026 prices "All Other Construction" by "Total Cost of Construction or Improvement": "$165 (Includes Application Fee of $165)" up to $1,000, then "$165 + $11.68/$1,000 over $1,000" up to $10,000 and "$271 + $2.49/$1,000 over $10,000" up to $100,000. It also says "AN ADMINISTRATIVE FEE WILL BE ASSESSED FOR WORK STARTED BEFORE A PERMIT IS OBTAINED". Inspections are booked through the front office at 906-225-8180 with the permit number.
Adopted code
2015 Michigan Residential Code. This is state law and it is the same in every Michigan city, village, township and county: the state construction code act says "This act and the code apply throughout the state," and the Michigan Residential Code rule adopts "the international residential code, 2015 edition" with the state amendments in R 408.30500 to R 408.30547g. A 2021 edition was filed with the secretary of state in 2025 but has not taken effect. On July 7, 2025 the Michigan Court of Claims entered a stipulated order in Home Builders Assoc et al. v LARA et al., and the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) says that while that order remains in place "the 2015 versions of the IRC and residential provisions of the IECC standards currently adopted, in part, by each rule set will remain valid and in effect." Locally, the Marquette County Building Codes Department's "Codes Currently Enforced" page lists "Michigan Residential Code (MRC) 2015 Effective February 8, 2016" for one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses, the same edition.
Drip edge
Required — Required on asphalt shingle roofs by state law. Michigan makes no amendment to the drip edge rule of the 2015 International Residential Code, Section R905.2.8.5, which applies as published: "A drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs." Segments overlap by at least 2 inches, the drip edge extends at least 1/4 inch below the roof sheathing and at least 2 inches back onto the deck, it is fastened at no more than 12 inches on center, and underlayment goes over it at the eaves and under it at the rakes. A reroof is held to the same rule, because "Materials and methods of application used for re-covering or replacing an existing roof covering shall comply with the requirements of Chapter 9" (R908.1). The Marquette County Building Codes Department's pages, its residential permit packet and its fee schedule (both effective January 1, 2026) were read for a local rule and state nothing further on drip edge.
About drip edgeIce & water shield
Required — Required everywhere in Michigan by state law. Michigan fills in the climatic design table of the 2015 code once for the whole state (Rule 516, Table R301.2(1)), and its ice barrier underlayment column reads Yes. The state footnote calls for Yes "for areas where the average daily temperature in January is 25 degrees Fahrenheit" or less, or where ice damming has caused damage. The base code then requires an ice barrier "for asphalt shingles, metal roof shingles, mineral-surfaced roll roofing, slate and slate-type shingles, wood shingles and wood shakes," running "from the lowest edges of all roof surfaces to a point not less than 24 inches (610 mm) inside the exterior wall line of the building" (R905.1.2). Detached accessory structures without conditioned floor area are exempt. On a tear-off, an existing ice barrier that is adhered to the deck may stay and be covered with an additional layer (R908.3, Exception). The Marquette County Building Codes Department's pages, its residential permit packet and its fee schedule (both effective January 1, 2026) were read for a local rule and state nothing further on ice barrier.
About ice & water barrierImpact-resistant roofing
Not required — No impact-resistance requirement under state law. The 2015 Michigan Residential Code was searched in full and has no hail or impact rating rule for roof coverings: the words hail, impact and UL 2218 do not appear in it, and none of them appears in the roof assemblies chapter of the base 2015 International Residential Code either. Michigan applies one code statewide ("This act and the code apply throughout the state."), and the act gives the power to amend it to the state director, who adopts the model codes "with amendments, additions, or deletions as the director determines appropriate." The Marquette County Building Codes Department's pages, its residential permit packet and its fee schedule (both effective January 1, 2026) were read for a local rule and state nothing further on impact resistance.
Roof layer limit / recover
Two layers at most, under state law. Michigan builds one- and two-family homes to the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which adopts the 2015 International Residential Code and makes no amendment to its reroofing section, Section R908; the Michigan rule set was searched in full and R908 does not appear in it. The base section therefore applies as the International Code Council publishes it. Section R908.3.1.1 lists the conditions under which a new roof may not be laid over an existing one, and the third is "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." One existing layer may be covered once; a roof that already carries two layers is torn off to the deck. The same section also bars covering a roof that is water soaked or too deteriorated to serve as a base, and covering "slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile." The Marquette County Building Codes Department's pages, its residential permit packet and its fee schedule (both effective January 1, 2026) were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roofing. The county publishes no building ordinance of its own (its ordinances page lists an off-road vehicle ordinance and a tobacco ordinance), so no local layer rule was found.
Deck & sheathing requirements
State law, from the base code. Michigan makes no amendment to the roof sheathing section of the 2015 International Residential Code, Section R803, which does not appear in the Michigan rule set, so it applies as published. 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 must 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 may not exceed "the values set forth in Table R503.2.1.1(1), or APA E30." For a shingle roof the base code adds that "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" (R908.2). The Marquette County Building Codes Department's pages, its residential permit packet and its fee schedule (both effective January 1, 2026) were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roof sheathing.
Sales & use tax
6%, statewide, with no local add-on. This is state law: the General Sales Tax Act sets the tax "equal to 6% of the gross proceeds of the business," the Use Tax Act sets "a total combined rate equal to 6%," and the Michigan Department of Treasury says "Michigan does not allow city or local units to impose sales tax." On a roofing job the roofer is the taxpayer on materials, because the Use Tax Act counts as a consumer "A person acquiring tangible personal property if engaged in the business of constructing, altering, repairing, or improving the real estate of others." Nothing on the Marquette County Building Codes Department's pages changes this.
More roof permit pages in Michigan
Related guides
The Marquette County Building Codes Department, part of the county's Resource Management/Development Department at the County Courthouse in Marquette, issues building permits and inspects construction for the whole county: the State of Michigan's jurisdiction list assigns building code enforcement in all three cities (Ishpeming, Marquette and Negaunee) and all 19 townships of Marquette County to the county, and no unit in the county enforces the building code for itself. Zoning approval stays with each city or township, and plumbing and mechanical permits come from the State. Michigan's single state construction code applies, and for houses that is the 2015 Michigan Residential Code.
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