Roofing in Benner Township, 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, Benner Township uses third-party agencies for building permits: its Zoning and Permits page says "Penns Valley Code Enforcement Agency and Keystone Inspection Agency is authorized by Benner Township to issue the Township Building Permits" and that a zoning permit must be obtained first. The Township office is at 1224 Buffalo Run Road, Bellefonte, and Penns Valley Code Enforcement Agency's office is at 225 East Main Street, Millheim. The Township's ordinance adopting the Uniform Construction Code is not among the ordinances it publishes online and was not read for this record, and the Township's permit pages name no code edition.

Benner Township text read for this record names no roof work as permit work or as exempt. The Township's Zoning and Permits page (read October 9, 2026) names no roof work either way, and neither agency's building permit application posted there has a roofing permit type: Penns Valley's lists building, zoning and demolition permits, solar panels (including "Roof Mounted"), pools and accessory structures, and Keystone's lists "New Construction Addition Alteration Repair" among its types of work. The Township's 2026 fee schedule has no roofing line. Section 21.3 of the Township's Zoning Ordinance says "A building and zoning permit shall be required prior to the following activities" including "the erection, addition or alteration of any building or portion thereof," and defines a building permit as one of the "Permits issued under the Uniform Construction Code"; it names no roof work. The Township's ordinance that adopts the Uniform Construction Code was not found among the ordinances it publishes and was not read for this record. 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." Read for this record: the Township's Zoning and Permits, Ordinances, Applications and Forms and Fee Schedule pages; the 2026 fee schedule; the Penns Valley Code Enforcement Agency and Keystone Inspection Agency building permit applications; the Township's zoning permit application; and the Zoning Ordinance (September 30, 2024 edition with amendments), searched for roof work. Where a building permit is needed, the Township's page says the applicant "first MUST obtain a Zoning Permit and provide three (3) sets of plans." Penns Valley Code Enforcement Agency's number is 814-349-8177 and Keystone Inspection Agency's is 814-359-3333; the Township office is at 814-355-1419, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.