Roofing in Fairfield Township (Lycoming 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, Fairfield Township's Code Enforcement page lists "Code Inspections, Inc." with "Building 570-547-0488" and "Zoning 570-547-2821"; the firm's own contact page lists those numbers at its Lycoming office, 2104 Route 54, Montgomery, and describes itself as a third-party agency that works for the municipality. The Township office is at 834 Fairfield Church Road, Montoursville (570-433-4212), with office hours posted as Fridays 7 am to 12:30 pm. The Township's Ordinances page lists its zoning, subdivision and land development, floodplain, stormwater and solar ordinances and no ordinance adopting the Uniform Construction Code, and no Township page read for this record names a code edition. The Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance was not found published and was not read for this record.

Fairfield Township's pages and ordinances read for this record do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Township's Zoning Ordinance of 2007 (Section 15.4.2) says "A Zoning Permit shall be required prior to the erection, construction, addition, or alteration of any building or structure or portion thereof" and lists among the exemptions "exterior or interior maintenance and repair to existing buildings or structures; including siding, roofing, painting, storm windows, and similar activities"; that is a zoning permit, and the section adds that "In some instances additional permits may also be needed to be obtained prior to beginning construction work or alterations." The agency's Frequently Asked Questions page lists "Residential - What DOES require a Building Permit?" and names, among other work, "Alterations that make structural changes or affect the means of egress," with the caution "Always check with your municipality first, some municipalities have adopted more restrictive requirements"; the list does not name roofing. Elsewhere the same page says, in answer to when plans need a professional stamp, "A few exceptions are items that do not need plans to confirm compliance, examples: changing furnace, new roofing, wire replacement, etc, it will still require a building permit, just not stamped plans." The page does not name Fairfield Township, and this record does not decide whether that sentence speaks to a house reroof in the Township. 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 Township's Ordinances page lists its zoning, subdivision and land development, floodplain, stormwater and solar ordinances and no ordinance adopting the Uniform Construction Code, and no Township page read for this record names a code edition. This record does not state whether the Township requires a building permit for a house reroof; ask the Township office (570-433-4212) or the Township's code enforcement agency (570-547-0488) before starting. Read for this answer: the Township's home, Code Enforcement, Ordinances, Contact Us and Forms pages; the Zoning Ordinance of 2007 (searched for roof, building permit and Uniform Construction Code text, with Section 15.4.2 read) and its 2021 and 2022 amendments (scanned pages, read from rendered page images); and the agency's FAQs, Permits and Contact pages. The Township's floodplain ordinance was not read for this record.