Roofing in Penn Hills, 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, the Municipality of Penn Hills administers the code itself through its Code Enforcement Department, which its page says is "responsible for enforcing the various codes of the Municipality such as zoning, building and grading" and inspects "all contract work." Chapter 1420 of the Codified Ordinances, Construction Code (Ord. 2412 of 2004 and Ord. 2452 of 2006), says "The Municipality hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as the Penn Hills Building Code of this Municipality"; its local amendments concern fire suppression, alarm and detection systems and touch no roofing section. Its permit-fee section, 1420.06, says "No permit shall be required for improvements of $2,000 or less." No other enacted text naming roofing as permit work was found in Chapter 1420, read in full, or in a search of the whole Code for "roof." The Municipality's later fee ordinance (Ordinance No. 2689 of 2022) says of building permits "No permit is required for improvement of $2,000.00 or less," and the department's page lists "New/Re-Roof: the construction of a new roof or replacement roof" under "A Permit is required for." The department's Required Residential Permits sheet, revised August 25, 2020, says "Penn Hills is currently using 2015 International Residential Code in Pennsylvania"; that sheet predates the State's 2021 adoption, effective January 1, 2026.

Penn Hills' Code Enforcement Department lists reroofing as permit work. Its page (https://pennhillspa.gov/municipal-code-enforcement-department/, read October 5, 2026) lists under "A Permit is required for" the item "New/Re-Roof: the construction of a new roof or replacement roof," and the Municipality's fee ordinance, Ordinance No. 2689 of 2022, says "No permit is required for improvement of $2,000.00 or less"; Section 1420.06 of the Codified Ordinances says the same ("No permit shall be required for improvements of $2,000 or less"). 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 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 department to require a building permit for a reroof costing more than $2,000, as its page and fee ordinance state; the department's residential permits sheet says "Permits must be applied for and issued before any work may begin." The page says "Building Permits will not be accepted online": applications go on paper to the department at 102 Duff Road, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the application asks for the contractor's "PA HIC #" and a photo ID. The fee is "$6.00 per $1,000.00 or fraction thereof of total construction costs," with a "Minimum fee $75.00." The department also keeps a contractor's registration ("Contractors must register annually," fee "$25.00") whose specialties list includes "Roofing."