Roofing in South Union Township, 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, South Union Township administers the code through a third-party agency: its Ordinance No. 2-04 says "This Municipality hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act" and lets it retain "one or more construction code officials or third-party agencies," and the Township's Zoning Certificate Application instructions say "Circumstances that require Building Permits will be directed K2 Engineering; Inc after a Zoning Certificate has been issued by a South Union Township Zoning Officer," giving K2 Engineering's office at 234 Pittsburgh Street, Suite 1, Uniontown, and 724-439-3440. Zoning certificates are applied for at the Township office, 151 Township Drive, Uniontown. Ordinance No. 2-04 adopts the Uniform Construction Code, "as amended from time to time," as the municipal building code and changes nothing in the code's roofing provisions; neither it nor the Township's pages name an edition. Ordinance No. 7-88 adopted "The BOCA Basic National Building Code/1987" before the Uniform Construction Code, and Ordinance No. 2-04 keeps earlier building code ordinances that equal or exceed the code in effect; the BOCA text was not read.

This record does not say whether a house reroof in South Union Township needs a building permit. South Union Township's own building permit ordinance, Ordinance No. 4-74, makes it unlawful to undertake "the construction, reconstruction, enlargement, alteration, or relocation of any building or structure unless an approved building permit has been obtained from the Municipal Building Permit Officer," and says "A building permit shall not be required for repairs to existing buildings or structures, provided that no structural changes or modifications are involved." Ordinance No. 2-2020 (September 2, 2020, read October 9, 2026, transcribed from the scanned copy) replaced its fee section, setting residential building permit applications at "25% of the permit fee charged by the Township Engineer," and says "In all other respects, South Union Township Ordinance No. 4-74 shall remain in full force and effect." Neither ordinance names roof work or defines "repairs," and this record does not decide whether a house reroof is a repair, a reconstruction or an alteration under it. Ordinance No. 7-88 adopts "The BOCA Basic National Building Code/1987" by reference, and Ordinance No. 2-04 keeps building code ordinances adopted on or before July 1, 1999 that equal or exceed the code in effect; the BOCA text is not published with the ordinance and was not read. The Township's pages and its Zoning Certificate Application, which has boxes for "Repairs" and "Roof Over Existing Decks," say nothing on whether a reroof needs a building permit. Under state law, Act 45 says the Act "shall not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" (section 104(b)(5) and (6)), 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". Before a reroof, ask K2 Engineering, Inc. at 724-439-3440 or the Township office, which is open Monday to Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at 724-438-5480. Read for this answer: Ordinance No. 2-04 (the Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance), Ordinance No. 4-74, Ordinance No. 2-2020 and Ordinance No. 7-88, in full as published; the descriptions of every ordinance the Township posts, by year; the Code Enforcement, Zoning, Ordinances and Office Hours pages; the Zoning Certificate Application and its instructions; and K2 Engineering's permit forms page. The Township has no codified code online and publishes no building permit fee schedule.