New Britain Borough - Code and Zoning

Borough of New Britain, Pennsylvania (Bucks County)

city

45 Keeley Avenue, New Britain, PA 18901

Required

Required

New Britain Borough's Exterior Structure Permit sheet names roof replacement as permit work. Read October 10, 2026: The Borough's Exterior Structure Permit Procedures sheet says "An Exterior Structure permit is required for replacement, renovation or alteration of roofs, siding, stucco, windows, and doors." Its Residential Home Improvement building permit sheet says "(For roofing, re-roofing, stucco/brick, siding, outside windows & doors use *Exterior Structure Permit)", and the Exterior Structure Permit form's Type of Work line lists "Roofing*" with the choices "Tear Off Patch Emergency." The Borough's fee schedule (Resolution No. 2025-09) lists an "EXTERIOR STRUCTURE PERMIT" fee for "Roofing & Re-roofing" and the form's fee table prices it: "Residential 1 project $100.00 / 2 or more projects - $175.00 total fee." Under state law, Act 45 says the Act "shall not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" (section 104(b)(5) and (6)), and of a municipal ordinance that adds to the code, section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). In practice, expect the Borough to require the permit for a reroof, as its sheet says; the permit form says "Work may not start until a permit has been approved and granted" and the form and fee schedule say "All Fees referenced within this section shall be doubled if the project is started without the applicable Permits and/or Approvals." The form's fee line adds a "$4.50 UCC Fee" to the permit fee. New Britain Borough takes permit applications at its Borough office, 45 Keeley Avenue, and its Code & Zoning page says "New Britain Borough contracts with" a consulting firm "for all building permit application reviews and inspections" and lists its Building Inspector and Zoning Officer at 215-622-1616. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 295, adopted May 11, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" by reference "as the municipal building code of this municipality," and its Section 165-3 lets the governing body choose by resolution among a Borough employee, "third-party agencies" and other arrangements. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code names no roof work and adds no permit clause of its own for residential repairs; the Borough Code is posted online with a search, and every page of a search of the Code and the Borough's public documents for "roof" (76 results; the code results are definitions, signs, height, stormwater and similar provisions, none a permit provision for roof work) and for "reroofing" (1 result, a Council packet) was read. Read for this answer: Chapter 165 of the Borough Code in full; every page of a search of the Borough Code and its public documents for "roof," "reroofing" and "re-roofing"; the Borough's Code & Zoning, All Permit & Application Packets and Forms & Applications pages; the Exterior Structure Permit procedures sheet and form; the Residential Home Improvement building permit sheet; and the fee schedule adopted by Resolution No. 2025-09 (scanned pages, read from rendered page images). The Borough office is open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Tuesday from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., at 215-348-4586.

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, New Britain Borough takes permit applications at its Borough office, 45 Keeley Avenue, and its Code & Zoning page says "New Britain Borough contracts with" a consulting firm "for all building permit application reviews and inspections" and lists its Building Inspector and Zoning Officer at 215-622-1616. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 295, adopted May 11, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" by reference "as the municipal building code of this municipality," and its Section 165-3 lets the governing body choose by resolution among a Borough employee, "third-party agencies" and other arrangements. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code names no roof work and adds no permit clause of its own for residential repairs; the Borough Code is posted online with a search, and every page of a search of the Code and the Borough's public documents for "roof" (76 results; the code results are definitions, signs, height, stormwater and similar provisions, none a permit provision for roof work) and for "reroofing" (1 result, a Council packet) was read. The Borough's pages name no code edition.

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, New Britain Borough takes permit applications at its Borough office, 45 Keeley Avenue, and its Code & Zoning page says "New Britain Borough contracts with" a consulting firm "for all building permit application reviews and inspections" and lists its Building Inspector and Zoning Officer at 215-622-1616. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 295, adopted May 11, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" by reference "as the municipal building code of this municipality," and its Section 165-3 lets the governing body choose by resolution among a Borough employee, "third-party agencies" and other arrangements. No Borough code chapter, permit sheet or fee schedule read for this record adds an impact-resistance rule.

New Britain Borough's Exterior Structure Permit covers roof replacement and has a flat residential fee with no area or cost threshold. The Borough's Exterior Structure Permit Procedures sheet says "An Exterior Structure permit is required for replacement, renovation or alteration of roofs, siding, stucco, windows, and doors." Its Residential Home Improvement building permit sheet says "(For roofing, re-roofing, stucco/brick, siding, outside windows & doors use *Exterior Structure Permit)", and the Exterior Structure Permit form's Type of Work line lists "Roofing*" with the choices "Tear Off Patch Emergency." The Borough's fee schedule (Resolution No. 2025-09) lists an "EXTERIOR STRUCTURE PERMIT" fee for "Roofing & Re-roofing" and the form's fee table prices it: "Residential 1 project $100.00 / 2 or more projects - $175.00 total fee." Read October 10, 2026. Under state law, Act 45 says the Act "shall not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" (section 104(b)(5) and (6)), and of a municipal ordinance that adds to the code, section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). 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, New Britain Borough takes permit applications at its Borough office, 45 Keeley Avenue, and its Code & Zoning page says "New Britain Borough contracts with" a consulting firm "for all building permit application reviews and inspections" and lists its Building Inspector and Zoning Officer at 215-622-1616. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 295, adopted May 11, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" by reference "as the municipal building code of this municipality," and its Section 165-3 lets the governing body choose by resolution among a Borough employee, "third-party agencies" and other arrangements. The Exterior Structure Permit sheet and fee quoted at the start name roofing in terms and set no 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, New Britain Borough takes permit applications at its Borough office, 45 Keeley Avenue, and its Code & Zoning page says "New Britain Borough contracts with" a consulting firm "for all building permit application reviews and inspections" and lists its Building Inspector and Zoning Officer at 215-622-1616. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 295, adopted May 11, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" by reference "as the municipal building code of this municipality," and its Section 165-3 lets the governing body choose by resolution among a Borough employee, "third-party agencies" and other arrangements. The Borough's Exterior Structure Permit sheet requires a permit for roof replacement, and neither it nor Chapter 165 says anything on roof layers. The Borough's pages name no code edition.

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, New Britain Borough takes permit applications at its Borough office, 45 Keeley Avenue, and its Code & Zoning page says "New Britain Borough contracts with" a consulting firm "for all building permit application reviews and inspections" and lists its Building Inspector and Zoning Officer at 215-622-1616. Chapter 165 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 295, adopted May 11, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" by reference "as the municipal building code of this municipality," and its Section 165-3 lets the governing body choose by resolution among a Borough employee, "third-party agencies" and other arrangements. The Borough's Exterior Structure Permit sheet requires a permit for roof replacement, and neither it nor Chapter 165 draws a line for roof sheathing. The Borough's Residential Home Improvement building permit sheet asks, for a project with roof framing, that "Roof sheathing and type of roof materials to cover it should be shown." The Borough's pages name no code edition.

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. New Britain Borough is in Bucks County. The Borough's permit pages and fee schedule say nothing on sales tax.