City of Star - Building Department

City of Star, Idaho

city

10769 W. State St., Star, ID 83669

Required

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A RE-ROOF PERMIT IN STAR IS REVIEWED THE SAME DAY, AND THAT IS THE CITY'S OWN PUBLISHED TARGET. Its FAQ gives typical review times as: mechanical, electrical and plumbing same day if the associated building permit is approved; "Demolition, Re-roofing, Siding: same day"; small residential projects two to four weeks; larger residential projects roughly four to six weeks; commercial four to six weeks. The City adds that those times fluctuate with volume and holidays and that each revision or correction extends review by three to four weeks. EVERYTHING IS ONLINE AND REGISTRATION COMES FIRST. The City states that all permitting through the building department is completed online, that an applicant must be registered as a contractor or homeowner in the system before submitting an application, and that registration is done through the Contractor Registration Form on the City's website. Registration issues an access code assigned to that contractor or homeowner, which is what is used to schedule inspections and upload files to an existing permit; the City says it does not share those codes. All payments are made online through the portal by card or e-check, and each permit must be paid for separately. INSPECTIONS. Inspections are scheduled by the contractor through the portal, and the City states plainly that it does not accept inspection requests by phone or e-mail. A next-day inspection must be requested by 4:00 p.m. on the previous business day. No weekend inspections. A rough and a final inspection will not be scheduled for the same day. Cancellations go by e-mail to the building department with the permit number, address and inspection type, and the City warns that changes cannot always be accommodated and that re-inspection fees may apply. FEES. Application submittal fees, which are not refundable or transferable to another submittal, are $100.00 residential, $200.00 commercial and $23.50 for a miscellaneous building permit application; a residential mechanical review fee is $35.00 and a residential re-submittal is $50.00. Building permit fees themselves are set by resolution of the city council under Star City Code 7-1-5(B), and all permit fees must be paid before a permit is issued. WHO MAY PULL THE PERMIT. The City states that architects, contractors and homeowners may apply, that an architect may manage permits but not perform work, and that "Contractors must have a current, valid license through the State of Idaho to apply for a permit." A homeowner who pulls the permit must perform all of the work on it and must plan to live in the residence within twelve months of completion; where the homeowner is not doing the work, a licensed contractor must pull the permit. ONE PRACTICAL WARNING THE CITY GIVES ITSELF. A Star ZIP code is not a Star address. The City explains that ZIP codes are USPS constructs that do not follow municipal boundaries, and it sends people to the Ada County Assessor's property lookup to establish which jurisdiction an address is actually in. Establish that before filing anything.

LOCALLY ENACTED, AND THE ADOPTION IS EXPRESSLY A MOVING ONE. Star City Code 7-1-5(A)(1) adopts "The approved editions of the following internationally recognized codes, as adopted by the state of Idaho and the Idaho building code board ... as the official building codes of the city", listing the international building code except sections 103.2, 103.3 and 101.4.4; the "International residential code, parts I through IV and IX, except section R103"; the international energy conservation code, amending section 201.3 to refer to the uniform plumbing code; the international mechanical code except sections 103.2, 103.3 and 103.4; and the international fuel gas code except section 103. Subsection (A)(2) then makes the adoption float: "The adopted versions of the foregoing codes shall be deemed superseded by successive versions of such codes as they are adopted or approved by the Idaho building code board and the state of Idaho effective on the date any such codes are made effective by the Idaho building code board and the state of Idaho." So Star tracks the State rather than stopping at the date of its own ordinance. The section's history is Ord. 118, 1-4-2005, amended by Ord. 408-2024 on 6-18-2024, and the City Code as published is codified through Ordinance No. 428-2025, enacted December 16, 2025. WHAT THAT EDITION IS TODAY, ON THE CITY'S OWN STATEMENT. The City's Adopted Codes & Design Criteria form, Form #313 revision 04-2024, is headed "Adopted Codes - Effective January 1, 2021" and lists the 2018 International Building Code with amendments; the "2018 International Residential Code (parts I, II, III, and IX), with Idaho amendments, collectively named the Idaho Residential Code (2020 Edition)"; the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code with amendments; and the 2018 International Existing Building Code. It adds the 2017 National Electrical Code with amendments, the 2018 International Mechanical Code, the 2018 International Fuel & Gas Code, the 2018 International Residential Code Parts V & VI, the 2017 Idaho State Plumbing Code based on the 2015 Uniform Plumbing Code, and the 2018 International Fire Code administered by the State Fire Marshal. The form explains its own naming: "The reference to 2020 Edition is an identifier to the legislative session in which the amendments were adopted. Amendments can be made in any legislative cycle regardless of the code cycle." NOTE ONE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE ORDINANCE AND THE FORM. The codified ordinance adopts the residential code "parts I through IV and IX" while the City's form and the State both name parts I, II, III and IX; Part IV is the energy part, and Idaho Code 39-4109(1)(b) keeps parts IV through VIII out of the Idaho residential code. Roofing is in Part III on either reading and is inside the adoption whichever way that difference is resolved. THE STATE FRAME. IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03 adopts the "International Residential Code, 2018 Edition ... Parts I, II, III, and IX of the 2018 Edition for one (1)- and two (2)- family dwellings"; Idaho Code 39-4116(2) requires a local government that issues building permits to adopt the Idaho residential code parts I-III and IX by ordinance and bars it from adopting provisions of a later edition the Board has not adopted. Idaho Code 39-4116(6) settles which edition governs a given job: "Permits shall be governed by the laws in effect at the time the permit application is received."

Required — Star City Code Title 7, Chapter 1, was read in full and does not touch Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies; IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03, the State of Idaho's own amendment list, does not touch it either. The base 2018 International Residential Code drip-edge requirement for asphalt shingle roofs, Section R905.2.8.5, therefore applies unmodified in Star. Confirm the flashing detail and the fastener spacing against the shingle manufacturer's printed instructions as well, which the code makes binding. About drip edge

Not required — STAR ANSWERS THIS QUESTION ITSELF, AND THE ANSWER IS NO. The last line of the City's Adopted Codes & Design Criteria form, Form #313 revision 04-2024, reads "Ice Barrier Underlayment Required? - No". The residential code leaves the ice barrier question to the jurisdiction's own entry in its climatic and geographic design criteria, and Star's entry is a negative, so no ice barrier underlayment is mandated by code for a roof inside the city limits. THREE THINGS THAT DOES NOT MEAN. It does not stop a manufacturer from requiring an ice barrier as a condition of its own warranty, and the code makes the manufacturer's printed installation instructions binding, so read them before leaving one out. It does not travel across the city line; a neighbouring Idaho jurisdiction may answer the same question Yes, and several do. And it is a code answer rather than a building-science one, so a north-facing low slope over an unvented or poorly insulated space can still ice-dam in Star. This value rests on the City's published design criteria form rather than on an ordinance; if a job turns on it, confirm the current answer with the Building Department before ordering material. About ice & water barrier

Not required — No impact-resistance mandate applies in Star. Star City Code Title 7, Chapter 1, Building Codes and Regulations, was read in full -- all eleven sections -- and contains no reference to UL 2218, to a Class 4 or Class IV impact rating, or to FM 4473, and no roofing provision of any kind; the City adopts the state editions and excepts only administrative sections. The City's own Adopted Codes & Design Criteria form carries no impact-rating criterion either. IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03, the State of Idaho's own amendment list to the 2018 International Residential Code, read in full, contains no such reference. So neither the City's nor the State's adopted code imposes an impact-resistant roof covering requirement. Do not confuse this with the fire and wind ratings that do appear in roofing work: an impact rating is UL 2218, a fire classification is Class A, B or C under ASTM E108 or UL 790, and a wind rating is ASTM D3161 or D7158. An insurance discount for impact-rated shingles, where a carrier offers one, is a matter between the homeowner and the insurer and is not a code requirement.

STAR NAMES RE-ROOFING ON THE FACE OF ITS OWN PERMIT LIST, WITH NO SIZE, AREA, DOLLAR OR TEAR-OFF-VERSUS-OVERLAY THRESHOLD ATTACHED. The City's building department FAQ answers the question "When is a building permit required?" with a list, and the list is: all new construction; structural additions and/or remodels; sheds or outbuildings 200 sq. ft. or larger; patio covers, pergolas or awnings, detached and larger than 200 sq. ft. or attached at any size; "Re-roofing projects"; fences over 6 ft. tall; retaining walls over 4 ft. from bottom of footing to top of wall; setting manufactured homes; "Replacement of siding (over 100 sq. ft.) on an existing house"; replacement of windows or doors where the openings are enlarged or reduced; decks 30 or more inches above grade; and demolition. NOTICE WHAT THAT LIST DOES AND DOES NOT QUALIFY. Siding carries a 100 square foot floor and sheds carry a 200 square foot floor; re-roofing carries no qualifier at all, so a patch is inside the requirement on the same footing as a full tear-off. THE EXEMPTIONS. Star City Code 7-1-5(D): "'Agricultural buildings', as defined by the international building code, are exempt from the building codes adopted herein but shall remain subject to placement requirements and permits established by zoning regulations", which the FAQ repeats in plainer terms and pairs with the reminder that such buildings must still comply with planning and zoning setbacks. The FAQ also states that "No building permit is required for a concrete slab of any size." Star City Code Title 7, Chapter 1, Building Codes and Regulations, was read in full -- all eleven sections, 7-1-1 through 7-1-11 -- and contains no other exemption and no roofing carve-out. THE STATE ADDS NO ROOFING EXEMPTION EITHER, and do not rely on the hundred-square-foot roof repair figure that appears in the Idaho state building code rules. It sits inside the definition of "Minor Alteration", which that rule says "is used for the purpose of administering annual permits" -- a blanket permit issued to state agencies for work on buildings they already own or operate. It is not a permit exemption for a homeowner or a roofing contractor anywhere in Idaho.

THE CITY PUBLISHES ITS OWN WIND FIGURE AND SPLITS IT BY RISK CATEGORY, WHICH IS THE PART TO GET RIGHT. The City's Adopted Codes & Design Criteria form, Form #313 revision 04-2024, states: "Wind - 115 mph risk occupancy II or less; 120 mph for risk occupancy III, or greater." A one- or two-family dwelling is Risk Category II, so a house in Star is designed to the 115 mph figure; the 120 mph figure belongs to Risk Category III and above, which is essential and high-occupancy construction rather than housing. Do not carry the higher number onto a residential job or the lower one onto a school or a shelter. The same form gives an exposure category of C, and requires ASCE 7 and the adopted building code for lateral loads with a geotechnical report. The form does not state whether the 115 mph figure is a nominal or an ultimate design wind speed, and the two are different bases for the same loading that must never be converted into one another by hand, so confirm the basis with the Building Department before applying it to a method or a product listing that specifies one. One state deletion sits inside the wind provisions and is worth knowing: IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03(d) deletes Section R301.2.1.2, Protection of Openings, which is the residential code's wind-borne debris opening protection section. That is a window and door provision rather than a roofing one, and Idaho Code 39-4116(4)(b) bars a local jurisdiction from re-adopting a provision the Idaho Building Code Board has expressly rejected.

NEITHER THE CITY OF STAR NOR THE STATE OF IDAHO MODIFIES THE MODEL RULE. Star City Code Title 7, Chapter 1, Building Codes and Regulations, was read in full -- all eleven sections: 7-1-1 Building Officials, 7-1-2 Electrical, Mechanical and Plumbing Inspectors, 7-1-3 Phone-In Permit System, 7-1-4 Primary Grounding Electrode, 7-1-5 Building Codes Adopted; Regulations; Permits, 7-1-6 National Electrical Code, 7-1-7 Plumbing Code, 7-1-8 International Fire Code, 7-1-9 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code, 7-1-10 International Existing Building Code and 7-1-11 Copies of Adopted Codes on File. The City's only exclusions from the residential code are section R103 and, on the commercial side, sections 103.2, 103.3 and 101.4.4 of the building code; it adds no roofing provision, and Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies, is untouched. IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03, the Idaho Building Code Board's own list of amendments to the 2018 International Residential Code, seventeen items, contains no Chapter 9 amendment either. So the base 2018 International Residential Code recover-versus-replacement rule applies here unmodified. Base-code rule, 2018 IRC Section R908.3.1.1, Roof recover not allowed: a roof recover is not permitted where the existing roof or roof covering is water soaked or has deteriorated to the point that it is not adequate as a base for additional roofing; where the existing roof covering is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile; or where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering. One existing layer may be recovered; a second forces a full tear-off. A local Idaho amendment to this rule would be unusually visible: Idaho Code 39-4116(4)(d) lets a city amend this part of the residential code only by ordinance, on a recorded finding that "good cause" for building or life safety exists and that the amendment is "reasonably necessary", after a public hearing noticed in the official newspaper with at least thirty days' written notice to the local chapters of the industry bodies listed in Idaho Code 39-4109(5). Star has made no such amendment.

NO LOCAL ROOF-DECK RULE. Star City Code Title 7, Chapter 1, read in full, contains no amendment to Chapter 8, Roof-Ceiling Construction, which carries the residential code's roof sheathing provisions, and none to Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies. IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03, the State of Idaho's own amendment list, leaves both chapters alone as well. The base 2018 International Residential Code roof sheathing and decking requirements therefore apply unmodified, along with the shingle manufacturer's printed installation instructions, which the code makes binding. WHAT THE CITY DOES PUBLISH IS THE LOADS THE STRUCTURE UNDER THE ROOF IS DESIGNED TO, AND STAR IS A LIGHT-SNOW JURISDICTION BY IDAHO STANDARDS. From the City's Adopted Codes & Design Criteria form: "Snow Load - Ground snow loads = 20 psf and also determined by section 7, of ASCE 7, however the design roof load shall not be less than a uniform snow load of 25 psf." The same form gives a frost line of 24 inches, weathering severe, exposure C, termite slight to moderate, decay slight to none, a winter design temperature of 10 degrees F, an annual mean temperature of 51.1 and an air freezing index of 294 attributed to the National Climatic Data Center. It also requires a geotechnical report for lateral loads and for soil properties on structures in seismic design. The form closes with the sentence that governs anything it does not cover: "If the information is not found below, refer to the adopted codes stated above for proper design methods to meet minimum compliance."

6.0% -- the Idaho state rate, with no local add-on. Idaho Code 63-3619 imposes the state sales tax "at the rate of six percent (6%)". Idaho has only two kinds of local sales tax, and neither applies here. The first is the resort-city local-option tax, which Idaho Code 50-1044 confines to a resort city "with a population not in excess of ten thousand (10,000)" that "derives the major portion of its economic well-being from businesses catering to recreational needs"; the Idaho State Tax Commission's own list of the cities that levy one does not include Star. The second is an auditorium-district tax, which the Tax Commission states "can charge a local sales tax only for short-term lodging (30 days or less)" and so never reaches roofing work. Idaho counties levy no sales tax at all, so Ada County adds nothing. HOW A ROOF IS TAXED, WHICH MATTERS MORE THAN THE RATE: the Tax Commission's contractor guidance states that "Idaho sales tax law says contractors are the consumers (end users) of all the goods they use. As a result, they must pay sales tax on all purchases", and it names roofers among the contractors it covers. The roofer pays the 6% on materials at the supply house; the homeowner's invoice carries no sales tax line at all, on materials or on labour, because "a contractor doesn't charge sales tax to the customer" and the tax is absorbed into the bid. The Commission adds that "if sales tax is charged on the bill, the customer can refuse to pay it." A customer's own sales-tax exemption does not carry over to the contractor. A roofer who also sells material he does not install is a retailer for that part and must separate it on the invoice.