Roofing in Brentwood, Pennsylvania

Required

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, Brentwood Borough administers the code itself: Chapter 85 of the Borough Code (Ordinance No. 1138, May 18, 2004) says the Borough "hereby elects to administer and enforce" the Act and adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the municipal building code, and the Borough's Building and Code Enforcement page says "Brentwood Borough locally enforces UCC regulations through the Department of Building Inspection/Code Enforcement," whose responsibilities include "issuing building permits." Section 85-6 (Ordinance No. 1296, 2021) amends the adopted codes' titles and some of their flood, existing-building, plumbing, fuel gas, mechanical and penalty sections, and Section 301.2(1) of the residential code; none of its changes is to the code's roofing provisions. The Borough's Building and Code Enforcement page refers to "The 2009 Uniform Construction Code," and Chapter 164 of the Borough Code, Residential Standards, notes that Ordinance No. 1133 of 2003 "incorporated and adopted the 2003 International Residential Code"; Chapter 85 adopts the Uniform Construction Code as amended from time to time and names no edition; this record has not read those editions' text and does not decide which edition the Borough applies.

Brentwood Borough's Department of Building Inspection/Code Enforcement lists "Roof construction or repair (no permit is required for minor patching)" among work needing a permit. The Borough's Building and Code Enforcement page (read October 9, 2026) says "Except for minor maintenance jobs (i.e. replacement of siding, windows, or gutters), most construction activity requires a permit prior to the commencement of work, including:" and lists "Roof construction or repair (no permit is required for minor patching)." The page gives the standard fee for a building permit as "$39 for work that costs less than $1000; a charge of $9 is added for each additional $1000 in cost." The Borough's codified fee schedule (Chapter A215, Resolution No. 2017-71) prices building permits by cost and has no roofing line. Under state law, Act 45 says the Act "shall not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" (section 104(b)(5) and (6)), and of a municipal ordinance that adds to the code, section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). In practice, expect the Borough to require a permit for a reroof beyond minor patching. Chapter 85 of the Borough Code states no penalty of its own for building work done without a permit. The office uses one "Application for a Uniform Construction Permit" for building projects, and the Borough's documents page says to use its online Permit Portal to apply. The page says roofers and other contractors "must verify their registration prior to obtaining a building permit from the Borough" and asks applicants to present proof of insurance with the permit form. The Borough office is at 3735 Brownsville Road, 412-884-1500. Read for this answer: Chapter 85 of the Borough Code, Construction Codes, Uniform, in full; Chapter 164, Residential Standards; the fee schedule, Chapter A215; every page of a search of the whole Borough Code for "roof" and for "reroofing," which found no permit provision naming roof work; and the Building and Code Enforcement page.