Roofing in Latrobe, 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, The City of Latrobe's Code Enforcement/Zoning Office, at 901 Jefferson Street, says it "issues building permits" and "administers the state UCC code," and sends building permit applicants to a third-party agency: "For building permitting information and applications, please go to Allsafe Build Code Services." That agency's Building Permits page lists the City of Latrobe under Westmoreland County, beneath the line "Applicable permits for the following municipalities will be issued by Allsafe BCS." Section 117-2 of the City Code says the City "elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Act" through an intermunicipal agreement with the Indiana-Westmoreland Council of Governments. Section 117-1 adopts the Uniform Construction Code as the City of Latrobe Building Code, and Chapter 117 changes nothing in the code's roofing provisions. Section 117-1 lists the 2003 editions of the International Code Council's codes, including "The International Residential Code 2003 (First Printing)," as the Uniform Construction Code "as amended and supplemented from time to time," and the City's page names no edition; this record has not read the 2003 edition's text and does not decide which edition the City applies. Chapter 108 of the City Code still adopts the BOCA National Building Code, 1993 Edition, whose text this record has not read.

The City of Latrobe's code and pages read for this record do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. Chapter 117 of the City Code, the City's Uniform Construction Code ordinance (Ord. No. 2004-7, June 28, 2004, read October 9, 2026), names no roof work either way and adds no permit clause of its own for house repairs; its Section 117-6B sets a fine of "not more than $0.10" and costs for a violation "involving repair, remodeling or alteration of any existing residential structure in the residential-designated zone." The City Code also still prints Chapter 108, Building Construction (Ord. No. 1981-2, amended 1996), which adopts the "BOCA National Building Code," 1993 Edition, for minimum standards for the "construction, alteration, enlargement, equipment, repair" of buildings and "providing for the issuance of permits"; this record has not read that code's permit sections and does not decide whether or how Chapter 108 applies to a house today. The City's fee schedule (Schedule B, Code and Zoning Fees) prices building code permits for "New building or new construction" and "Repairs: $15 for the first $1,000 in value plus $2 for each additional $1,000 in value," with no roofing line. The Code Enforcement/Zoning Office's page says nothing on roofing. It says "UCC permits are issued for residential, commercial and industrial additions and new construction, as well as electrical, plumbing, HVAC and swimming pools," and offers a City Repair Permit Application, a general form with no roofing category, under "Repair/Zoning/Fire Pit/Street & Sidewalk Permit Info." The agency's application list has no roofing application. 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." This record does not state whether the City requires a permit for a house reroof; ask the Code Enforcement/Zoning Office (724-539-8548, extension 1009) before starting. Permit applications can be dropped off at the code office, which is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Read for this answer: Chapter 117 of the City Code, Construction Codes, Uniform (Sections 117-1 to 117-9), Chapter 108, Building Construction (Sections 108-1 to 108-5), and Chapter 98, Administration and Enforcement (Sections 98-1 to 98-12), in full; Section 3-48 and its Schedule B, Code and Zoning Fees; every page of a search of the whole City Code for "roof" and for "reroofing," which found no permit provision naming roof work; the Code Enforcement/Zoning page and the City's forms page, including its Repair Permit Application; and the agency's Building Permits page.