Roofing in Bedford, Pennsylvania

Required

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, Bedford Borough's Code Enforcement/Zoning page says "The Borough of Bedford works closely with Pennsylvania Municipal Code Alliance (PMCA) to ensure codes and zoning ordinances are enforced" and lists the agency's Bedford office at 125 S. Richard Street, Suite 102, phone 814-310-2326; the Borough's Zoning/HARB Permit Application, posted on its Applications and Permits page, says "it is the applicant's responsibility to obtain a Building Permit prior to starting construction as per Act 45" and its official-use certification has the line "A Uniform Construction Code Building Permit is required: YES NO." Zoning and historic-district applications go to the Borough office, 244 W. Penn Street, Bedford. The Borough's pages name no code edition.

Bedford Borough's pages read for this record do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Borough's Zoning/HARB Permit FAQ says "A Zoning/HARB Permit shall be required prior to the erection, addition or alteration of any building or structure or portion thereof; prior to the use or change in use of a building, structure or land; and prioer to the change or extension of a non-conforming use," and the zoning chapter posted on the Borough's site (Chapter 27, Section 2008 A, adopted March 7, 2011 per the file name) has the same sentence; that chapter defines "ALTERATIONS" as "any change or rearrangement in the total floor area or an enlargement, whether by extending on a side or by increasing in height, or the moving from one location or position to another" and names no roof work. Part 21 of that chapter, the Historic District Ordinance, says in Section 2107 "Except for interior alterations or modifications, no person shall erect, construct, reconstruct, alter, restore, demolish, paint, raze or change in appearance, in any manner, any building or structure, in whole or in part, within any historic district" without first "obtaining permits which have been issued on the strength of a certificate of appropriateness issued by Borough Council," and the FAQ says "Approval from the Historical Architectural Review Board (H.A.R.B.) is required for any work that would affect the general design, arrangement, texture, material or color of any structure or building in any historic district when the result of such work is capable of being viewed from a public street or way"; neither names a roof. The Zoning/HARB Permit Application lists "Replace a Structure(s)" among the boxes under "Describe Project (Check all that apply)," a box on a general application, and its fee, "$25 per the first $1,000.00 in estimated construction costs and $1.00 per each additional $1,000.00 in estimated construction costs for only the Zoning portion," is set by the 2026 Borough Fee Schedule under "Zoning/Land Use," which lists no building or roofing line. This record does not decide whether a house reroof is an "alteration" in those clauses or needs any Borough permit. PMCA's own website carries a letter to municipal officials, dated July 20, 2018 and posted on its FAQ page, that says "a residential Re-roof still requires compliance with the provisions of the UCC but does not require a building permit" and also says "If structural work is required such as replacing studs, headers, rafters or trusses a permit would now be required"; the letter names no municipality and is not posted on the Borough's pages, and its Re-Roof Application Packet says "A Building Permit is required if there is a structural repair." This record does not treat either as the Borough's own statement. 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." Ask the Borough office (814-623-8192) or PMCA's Bedford office (814-310-2326) before starting. The Borough office is open Monday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., closed 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. Read for this answer: the Borough's home, Code Enforcement/Zoning, Code Enforcement/Zoning FAQ, Miscellaneous Permits FAQ, Applications and Permits, Ordinances, Historic Architectural Review Board and Fee Schedules pages, the Zoning/HARB Permit Application, the 2026 Borough Fee Schedule, the zoning chapter (Chapter 27) posted on the Borough's site, and PMCA's FAQ, Locations, Resources and Permit Applications pages. The Borough's Code of Ordinances is hosted at codelibrary.amlegal.com, which returned a bot-check page to automated requests and was not read, so the Borough's Uniform Construction Code ordinance and its current codified chapters were not read for this record.