Williams Township - Zoning Office

Township of Williams, Pennsylvania (Northampton County)

city

655 Cider Press Road, Easton, PA 18042

Required

Williams Township's pages read for this record do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Township's Zoning and Building Department page says "Williams Township requires all property owners to obtain a permit for new construction" and "Please contact the Township Zoning Office before you start your project to determine if a permit is required." The Township's 2026 fee schedule (Resolution 2026-5) has no roofing line. The Keycodes Inspection Agency 2025 residential fee schedule the Township posts lists "ROOF REPLACEMENT" at "$115.00 - includes one site visit" under the heading "FLAT RATE COSTS (NEW CONSTRUCTION ONLY) - CONTINUED", and the Township's application for zoning/building permit has no roofing box. The roof replacement fee is printed under a heading limited to new construction, so this record does not decide whether it applies to a reroof of an existing house. Section 5-101 of the Township Code (Ord. 2004-2, as amended by Ord. 2006-9) elects to administer and enforce the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act and adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the Township Building Code; it names no roof work and no permit exemption. Part 4 of the same chapter (Ord. No. 2003-2, April 8, 2003) adopts the 2000 International Building Code with local changes to that code's administrative chapter, none of which names roof work; the permit sections of the 2000 edition are adopted by reference and their text was not read for this record. A search of the whole Township Code for "roof" found no section that requires or exempts a permit for roof work. 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 the Township requires a permit for a house reroof; ask the Zoning Office (610-258-0522) or Keycodes Inspection Agency (610-866-9663) before starting. Building permit applications, plans and construction drawings go to the municipal office, open Monday through Friday, 7:00am to 3:30pm, and the fee schedule says "After the fact permits (permits obtained after construction, change of use or occupancy) shall be double the pertinent fee above." Read for this answer: Chapter 5 of the Township Code, Code Enforcement, Part 1 (Section 5-101) and Part 4 (Sections 5-401 to 5-404), and Chapter 4, Buildings, in full; every page of a search of the whole Township Code for "roof" and for "reroofing"; the Zoning and Building Department and Forms pages; the 2026 fee schedule (Resolution 2026-5); the Keycodes Inspection Agency 2025 residential fee schedule; and the Township's application for zoning/building permit.

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, Williams Township in Northampton County takes building permit applications at its Zoning Office in the municipal building at 655 Cider Press Road, Easton, and its Zoning and Building Department page says "Please note that as of January 8, 2013 Keycodes Inspection Agency is the third party building code inspection agency for Williams Township. All building code inspections will be performed by them." Section 5-101 of the Township Code (Ord. 2004-2, as amended by Ord. 2006-9) elects to administer and enforce the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act and adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the Township Building Code; it names no roof work and no permit exemption. Part 4 of the same chapter (Ord. No. 2003-2, April 8, 2003) adopts the 2000 International Building Code with local changes to that code's administrative chapter, none of which names roof work; the permit sections of the 2000 edition are adopted by reference and their text was not read for this record. A search of the whole Township Code for "roof" found no section that requires or exempts a permit for roof work. The Township's Zoning and Building Department page says "On June 1st, 2010, Williams Township began enforcing the 2009 International Building Codes as per the State mandated Uniform Construction Code" and names no later edition, and Section 5-101 quotes the 2006 printings of the International Building Code and International Residential Code; the text above is the 2021 edition's, the older editions' text was not read for this record, and this record does not decide which edition the Township applies.

Williams Township text read for this record names no roof work as permit work or as exempt in terms that settle the ordinary reroof. The Township's Zoning and Building Department page says "Williams Township requires all property owners to obtain a permit for new construction" and "Please contact the Township Zoning Office before you start your project to determine if a permit is required." The Township's 2026 fee schedule (Resolution 2026-5) has no roofing line. The Keycodes Inspection Agency 2025 residential fee schedule the Township posts lists "ROOF REPLACEMENT" at "$115.00 - includes one site visit" under the heading "FLAT RATE COSTS (NEW CONSTRUCTION ONLY) - CONTINUED", and the Township's application for zoning/building permit has no roofing box. Section 5-101 of the Township Code (Ord. 2004-2, as amended by Ord. 2006-9) elects to administer and enforce the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act and adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the Township Building Code; it names no roof work and no permit exemption. Part 4 of the same chapter (Ord. No. 2003-2, April 8, 2003) adopts the 2000 International Building Code with local changes to that code's administrative chapter, none of which names roof work; the permit sections of the 2000 edition are adopted by reference and their text was not read for this record. A search of the whole Township Code for "roof" found no section that requires or exempts a permit for roof work. 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." 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, Williams Township in Northampton County takes building permit applications at its Zoning Office in the municipal building at 655 Cider Press Road, Easton, and its Zoning and Building Department page says "Please note that as of January 8, 2013 Keycodes Inspection Agency is the third party building code inspection agency for Williams Township. All building code inspections will be performed by them." 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, Williams Township in Northampton County takes building permit applications at its Zoning Office in the municipal building at 655 Cider Press Road, Easton, and its Zoning and Building Department page says "Please note that as of January 8, 2013 Keycodes Inspection Agency is the third party building code inspection agency for Williams Township. All building code inspections will be performed by them." Chapter 5 of the Township Code changes nothing in the code's reroofing provisions, and the Township's pages say nothing on roof layers. The Township's Zoning and Building Department page says "On June 1st, 2010, Williams Township began enforcing the 2009 International Building Codes as per the State mandated Uniform Construction Code" and names no later edition, and Section 5-101 quotes the 2006 printings of the International Building Code and International Residential Code; the text above is the 2021 edition's, the older editions' text was not read for this record, and this record does not decide which edition the Township applies.

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, Williams Township in Northampton County takes building permit applications at its Zoning Office in the municipal building at 655 Cider Press Road, Easton, and its Zoning and Building Department page says "Please note that as of January 8, 2013 Keycodes Inspection Agency is the third party building code inspection agency for Williams Township. All building code inspections will be performed by them." Chapter 5 of the Township Code changes nothing in the code's roof sheathing provisions, and the Township's pages draw no line for roof sheathing on a reroof. The Township's Zoning and Building Department page says "On June 1st, 2010, Williams Township began enforcing the 2009 International Building Codes as per the State mandated Uniform Construction Code" and names no later edition, and Section 5-101 quotes the 2006 printings of the International Building Code and International Residential Code; the text above is the 2021 edition's, the older editions' text was not read for this record, and this record does not decide which edition the Township applies.

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. Williams Township is in Northampton County. The Township's pages and 2026 fee schedule say nothing on sales tax.