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Roofing in Idaho Falls, Idaho

Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Idaho Falls, ID, issued by City of Idaho Falls, Idaho - Building Division. Idaho Falls moved its permitting onto Cityworks on April 1, 2024, replacing eTrakit; everyone needs a new account, and permits, fees, inspection scheduling and inspection results all run through the public portal. The City lists licensed contractors, homeowners, engineers and surveyors as the people who may pull a permit. START THE WORK FIRST AND IT COSTS DOUBLE: the Building Division states that "if work is started on any building, electrical, mechanical, or plumbing projects without first obtaining the required permit(s), a double fee will be assessed for that project." ONE IDAHO FALLS AMENDMENT IS WORTH REAL MONEY ON A RE-ROOF, and it is easy to misread. City Code 7-6-2(M) and 7-6-2(N) rewrite the exceptions to IRC Sections R314.2.2 and R315.2.2 -- the sections that force smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms to be brought up to current standard when a dwelling is altered or repaired -- so that "Work involving the exterior surfaces of dwellings, such as, but not limited to, replacement of roofing or siding, or the addition or replacement of windows or doors, or the addition of a porch or deck or electrical permits, are exempt from the requirements of this section." Read the heading before the item: that exempts a re-roof from the alarm retrofit, not from the building permit. The City's own permit-exemption handout is a different document and does not list roofing at all. CONTACTS: the Building Division publishes Garret Christoffersen, Chief Building Inspector, at 208-313-4727, and Chad Burton, Building Inspector, at 208-973-2274; the City's main line is 208-612-8100 and the City Clerk, who takes contractor licence fees, is at 208-612-8415. The Building Division publishes its own direct line as 208-612-8270 on the Homeowner as General Contractor form, and sits in Community Development Services at 308 Constitution Way. This hub aggregates roofing permit and contractor-registration requirements for Idaho Falls, Idaho, along with sourced roofing material references — every fact linked to its directory record.

Roofing permits & building code in Idaho Falls

Roofing permit and contractor-licensing rules in Idaho Falls are set locally by City of Idaho Falls, Idaho - Building Division. Idaho roofers come under the Idaho Contractor Registration Act (Idaho Code 54-5201 et seq.), which makes it unlawful to work as a contractor without registering with the Idaho Contractors Board in the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses, exempts only a casual or minor job whose labour and materials together come to less than $2,000, and requires the contractor’s registration number on the building permit, while a city or county that issues building permits must adopt the residential code edition set by the Idaho Building Code Board and may amend its roofing provisions only on a finding of good cause for building or life safety after a public hearing — always confirm the current requirements with the authority before starting work.

Roofing permit
Required
Contractor registration
Required
Adopted building code
LOCALLY ENACTED, ON A STATE-MANDATED EDITION. The operative instrument is Idaho Falls City Code Title 7, Chapter 6, International Residential Code, which the City publishes on its own City Code page. Section 7-6-1(A): "The International Residential Code for One and Two Family Dwellings, 2018 Edition, published by the International Code Council, Inc., including Appendix M, is hereby adopted as an official code of the City, except the portions deleted, modified or amended by the provisions of this Chapter." Section 7-6-2 then lists the City's local amendments as items (A) through (V) -- twenty-two of them, reaching R101.2 scope, R104.10.1, the R105.2 permit exemptions, R109.1.3 floodplain inspections, R301.2.1.2, Table R301.2(1), Table R302.1(1), R302.13, R303.4, R313.1 and R313.2 sprinklers, the R314.2.2 and R315.2.2 alarm exceptions, R322 flood provisions, the R403 footing tables, R403.1.1, R405.1 and R602.10 wall bracing. None of the twenty-two amends Chapter 8 or Chapter 9, so the roofing chapter stands as published. Alongside it the City has adopted, in the other chapters of Title 7, the 2018 International Building Code (Chapter 1), the 2018 International Property Maintenance Code, a school building code, the 2018 International Fuel Gas Code, the Uniform Plumbing Code, the 2018 International Mechanical Code, the National Electrical Code, a local sign code, the 2018 International Fire Code, the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code and the 2018 International Existing Building Code; the Building Division's own page links the 2018 editions of the residential, energy conservation, fire, property maintenance, swimming pool and spa, existing building and building codes. THE STATE FRAMEWORK: Idaho's residential code is set by the Idaho Building Code Board, not by the city. IDAPA 24.39.30.600.03 adopts the "International Residential Code, 2018 Edition ... Parts I, II, III, and IX of the 2018 Edition for one (1)- and two (2)-family dwellings", effective July 1, 2024, together with a list of state amendments; Idaho Code 39-4116(2) requires a local government that issues building permits and performs code enforcement to adopt the Idaho residential code parts I-III and IX by ordinance. Parts IV through VIII -- energy, mechanical, fuel gas, plumbing and electrical -- are not part of the Idaho residential code (Idaho Code 39-4109(1)(b)); roofing sits in Part III and is included. Idaho Code 39-4116(2) also bars a local jurisdiction from adopting provisions of a later IRC edition the Board has not adopted, so a city cannot be ahead of the state. Idaho Code 39-4116(6): "Permits shall be governed by the laws in effect at the time the permit application is received."
Registration details
  • state_level: STATEWIDE, AND INDEPENDENT OF WHATEVER THIS JURISDICTION REQUIRES. Idaho Code 54-5204(1), in the Idaho Contractor Registration Act (Title 54, Chapter 52): "On and after January 1, 2006, it shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of, or hold himself out as, a contractor within this state without being registered as required in this chapter." A roofer is inside the definitions rather than at their edge: "Construction" means "the performance of building, altering, repairing, adding to, subtracting from, improving, reconstructing, moving, excavating, wrecking or demolishing any building ... or improvement to real property, or to do any part thereof" (54-5203(2)), and "Contractor" means any person who "undertakes, offers to undertake, purports to have the capacity to undertake, or submits a bid to, or does himself or by or through others, perform construction" (54-5203(3)(a)). Roofing is not separately licensed at state level in Idaho, so this registration is the whole of the state credential. THRESHOLD: 54-5205(2)(f) exempts work on "one (1) undertaking or project considered casual, minor, or inconsequential, whether by one (1) or more contracts, the aggregate contract price of which, for labor and materials and all other items, is less than two thousand dollars ($2,000)" -- a per-project figure covering labour and materials together, not annual revenue, and the same paragraph voids the exemption where the work is part of a larger project or where one job is split into sub-$2,000 contracts. A residential reroof is rarely under $2,000. An owner working on his own residential property is exempt (54-5205(2)(l)), as is an owner who hires a registered contractor (54-5205(2)(k)); an employee on wages is exempt but an unregistered subcontractor is not (54-5205(2)(a)). CONSEQUENCES OF NOT REGISTERING, and a homeowner should check: an unregistered contractor "shall be deemed to have conclusively waived any right to place a lien upon real property" (54-5208); may not "bring or maintain any action in any court of this state for the collection of compensation" without proving registration throughout the work (54-5217(2)); and is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $1,000, up to six months in county jail, or both (54-5217(1)). AT THE PERMIT COUNTER: 54-5209(1) requires every county, municipality or district that issues building permits to request the contractor's Idaho registration number and print it on the face of the permit, or else print "no contractor registration provided"; 54-5209(2) requires the permit to be posted at the site so that statement is visible. WHAT IT TAKES: an application under oath, proof of worker's compensation coverage or a statement why it is not required, and a general liability policy including products and completed operations coverage of not less than $300,000 single limit (54-5210(1)). It is a registration, not a competency licence -- there is no examination. Administered by the Idaho Contractors Board within the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (54-5206(1)); registrations can be checked by name at the Division's public search.
  • city_level: IDAHO FALLS ADDS A SEPARATE, ROOFING-SPECIFIC CITY LICENCE, AND IT IS NOT A BUSINESS LICENCE. City Code 4-7-3(A): "No person shall build, construct, alter, repair or modify any building in the City without obtaining an appropriate building contractor's license as set forth below." The City runs four classes, and roofing is named in the one it falls into. City Code 4-7-2 defines "CLASS D CONSTRUCTION" as "Relating to specific trades, including, but not limited to, such concrete, masonry, framing, drywall or roofing", and 4-7-7(D) says a Class D licence "shall entitle the holder thereof to perform the specific trade for which they are licensed for, whether it be concrete, masonry, framing, drywall or roofing, or other specific trade." The City's own Building Division page states the answer in one line: "Roofing - requires city license Class D and state licensing." THE LICENCE GATES THE PERMIT. City Code 4-7-2 provides that "only a contractor licensed under the provisions of this Chapter may obtain a building permit", and 4-7-4 requires the contractor to show proof of the appropriate licence to the Building Department before a permit is issued. HOW TO QUALIFY: the City states three routes -- passing the relevant International Code Council trade examination, a bachelor's degree in architecture, engineering or construction management, or reciprocity for an applicant holding an active building contractor's licence in Utah, Arizona, Oregon, California or Florida -- and applications are made through the City's Cityworks portal with fees paid online or to the City Clerk. FEES AND RENEWAL as the City publishes them, and treat these as the volatile part: a Class D licence is $250 new and $150 to renew (Classes A, B and C are $325 and $225; a reciprocal licence is $60 either way; late renewal or reinstatement adds $75; an inactive licence is $100). Every licence expires one year from its issuance date, and City Code 4-7-9(B) provides that no building permit shall be issued to a contractor holding an inactive licence. CONTINUING EDUCATION is required to renew: the City states four hours a year for Class D holders, against eight for Classes A, B and C. THE CITY ALSO CHECKS THE STATE REGISTRATION: City Code 4-7-6 requires that "Every Contractor will be registered with the Idaho Bureau of Occupational Licenses", with "Evidence of registration ... provided to the City or its designated agent upon initial application and each subsequent renewal" -- that state registration is now administered by the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses. THE CITY'S OWN FORM CONFIRMS WHICH TRADES IT LICENSES. On the Homeowner as General Contractor and Subcontractor List, which a homeowner acting as his own general contractor must file, the City states that it "requires either a city license or a state license / registration number" for every subcontractor, and then lists the trades: general contractor, plumbing, electrical, roofing, concrete, mechanical and framing -- with "City License Not Required" printed against plumbing, electrical and mechanical, which Idaho licenses at state level, and nothing printed against roofing, concrete or framing, which the City licenses itself. HOMEOWNERS: City Code 4-7-3(B)(3) exempts "A homeowner who personally occupies or will occupy and undertakes the construction, alteration, repair, or maintenance of such homeowner's single-family residence or an accessory structure thereto", but the same paragraph provides that anyone the homeowner hires as paid labour "shall be deemed a sub-contractor and shall be required to be licensed as such". So a homeowner may re-roof his own house; the roofer he pays may not do it unlicensed.
Permit process
Idaho Falls moved its permitting onto Cityworks on April 1, 2024, replacing eTrakit; everyone needs a new account, and permits, fees, inspection scheduling and inspection results all run through the public portal. The City lists licensed contractors, homeowners, engineers and surveyors as the people who may pull a permit. START THE WORK FIRST AND IT COSTS DOUBLE: the Building Division states that "if work is started on any building, electrical, mechanical, or plumbing projects without first obtaining the required permit(s), a double fee will be assessed for that project." ONE IDAHO FALLS AMENDMENT IS WORTH REAL MONEY ON A RE-ROOF, and it is easy to misread. City Code 7-6-2(M) and 7-6-2(N) rewrite the exceptions to IRC Sections R314.2.2 and R315.2.2 -- the sections that force smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms to be brought up to current standard when a dwelling is altered or repaired -- so that "Work involving the exterior surfaces of dwellings, such as, but not limited to, replacement of roofing or siding, or the addition or replacement of windows or doors, or the addition of a porch or deck or electrical permits, are exempt from the requirements of this section." Read the heading before the item: that exempts a re-roof from the alarm retrofit, not from the building permit. The City's own permit-exemption handout is a different document and does not list roofing at all. CONTACTS: the Building Division publishes Garret Christoffersen, Chief Building Inspector, at 208-313-4727, and Chad Burton, Building Inspector, at 208-973-2274; the City's main line is 208-612-8100 and the City Clerk, who takes contractor licence fees, is at 208-612-8415. The Building Division publishes its own direct line as 208-612-8270 on the Homeowner as General Contractor form, and sits in Community Development Services at 308 Constitution Way.
Portal
Permit portal

View the full Idaho Falls permitting authority record →

Roofing suppliers in Idaho Falls

4 roofing distributor branches serving Idaho Falls are cataloged in the directory:

Roofing suppliers in Idaho Falls

EZ Steel, LLCEZ Steel - Idaho Falls Gulfeagle SupplyGulfeagle Supply - Idaho Falls, ID Harrington & CompanyHarrington & Company - Idaho Falls Triad Building ComponentsTriad Building Components - Idaho Falls

All roofing suppliers in Idaho Falls →

Roofing materials for Idaho Falls

Compare roofing material families — service life, weight, cost band, and durability — for a Idaho Falls reroof. Every material entry in the directory carries a cited, dated source.

Start with all roofing materials or the asphalt vs. metal vs. tile comparison.

Local permitting authority

City of Idaho Falls, Idaho - Building Divisioncity

Roofing guides

Class 4 Impact-Resistant ShinglesGuide Asphalt vs. Metal vs. TileGuide Wind & Fire RatingsGuide

Sources