Roofing in Clay Township (Lancaster County), 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, Clay Township issues zoning permits itself and has building permits handled by a third-party agency the applicant picks: the Township's Building / Zoning Permit Application says "The Township will continue to do all zoning reviews and zoning permit issuance. The Township has contracted with the following Third Party Agencies for residential and commercial building permits. The one you pick will do the plan review and inspections as required by the PA UCC Building Codes," listing Associated Building Inspections, Building Inspection Underwriters and Commonwealth Code Inspectors. The Township office is at 870 Durlach Road, Stevens. Section 202 of Chapter 4 adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the Municipal Building Code of Clay Township, and Chapter 4 changes nothing in the code's roofing provisions. Neither the Township Code nor the Township's pages name a code edition in force.

No Clay Township text read names reroofing as building permit work or as exempt from a building permit. The Township's Zoning page (read October 9, 2026) says "Building Permits are required by the Township for fences, sheds, pools, patios, new structures, remodeling, renovations, as well as sign installation, highway occupancy and septic systems. If you are planning a project or have questions, you should contact the Clay Township Zoning Officer prior to commencing work." It names no roof work. Part 2 of Chapter 4 of the Township Code, Municipal Building Code (Ord. No. 051004, 2004), adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" as the Municipal Building Code of Clay Township. A 2004 amendment to Section 202(a) said the Act's exclusions for residential alterations and repairs "are specifically not adopted by Clay Township"; in the Township's published code that text is printed struck through, under an editor's note that "Struck out Sections 1., 2., 3. and 4. of Section 202(a) herein were declared null & void by the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry following a Challenge brought by that Department at Docket No. 008-UCC-04, which Clay Township chose not to contest." No other Township building text names repairs, alterations or roof work. The zoning permit in Section 704 of the Zoning Ordinance says "no Permit shall be required for repairs to and maintenance of any structure, provided that such repairs and maintenance do not change the use, or structure"; that sentence speaks to the zoning permit only. The Township's 2026 schedule of fees has no building permit or roofing line, and its Building / Zoning Permit Application has no roofing box. 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." Because the Township's only building permit clause in force is the state code's own, adopted by reference, and neither the Township nor its agencies have published a statement on reroofs that this record could read, this record does not decide whether a building permit is required for an ordinary reroof in Clay Township. Ask the Township office at 717-733-9675 before work starts. Section 206 of Chapter 4 sets a fine of "not more than $1,000.00 and costs" for failing to comply with the code. The office is open Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. Read for this answer: Chapter 4 of the Township Code, Buildings, in full, including Part 2, Municipal Building Code (Sections 201 to 208); Article VII of the Zoning Ordinance, Enforcement Procedure; every chapter and Zoning Ordinance article the Township publishes on its Code of Ordinances and Zoning Ordinance pages, searched for "roof" and "reroofing," which found no permit provision naming roof work; the Zoning and Forms, Applications, Fee Schedules pages; the Building / Zoning Permit Application; and the 2026 schedule of fees. The three agencies' own fee schedules are not published on the Township's site and were not read.