Roofing in Boyertown, 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, Boyertown Borough administers the code through a third-party agency: the Borough's Code Enforcement page says "LTL Consultants, Ltd. serves as the Borough's third-party agency for issuance of UCC Building Permits, building permit-related inspections, Zoning Permits, Property Maintenance Code Enforcement, and inspection of rental units," and Chapter 78 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 04-04, June 7, 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" as "the municipal building code of the Borough." Section 78-5 keeps in force building code ordinances adopted on or before July 1, 1999 "which equal or exceed the requirements of the Code"; none is codified in the Borough Code as published. Chapter 78 changes nothing in the code's roofing provisions, and the Borough's pages name no code edition.

Boyertown Borough's FAQ says repairs need a building permit without naming roof work. The Borough's FAQ, answering "When do I need a building permit and how much will it cost?", says "You need a building permit for all construction that involves the construction, repair, movement to another site, removal, or demolition of any building or structure." It names no roof work. Chapter 78 adopts the Uniform Construction Code by reference and adds no permit rule of its own; a search of the whole Borough Code for "roof" and for "reroofing" found no permit provision on roof work. The Borough's fee resolution (Resolution No. 12-01-25A) prices residential "Renovations, Alterations, Modification, and where none of the above categories apply" at $0.38 per square foot with a $200.00 minimum and has no roofing line, and the Building and Zoning Permit Application names no 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." The same FAQ says "Work on a project may not legally begin before a permit is obtained and on the work site." The agency, LTL Consultants, Ltd., is at One Town Centre Drive, Boyertown, PA 19512, phone 610-987-9290; the Borough office is at 100 South Washington Street, phone 610-369-3028. Read for this record: Chapter 78 of the Borough Code (Construction Codes, Uniform) in full; every page of a search of the whole Borough Code for "roof" and for "reroofing"; the Borough's Code Enforcement and FAQ pages; its Building and Zoning Permit Application; and Resolution No. 12-01-25A, its fee schedule.