Roofing in Springfield Township (Mercer 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, Springfield Township sends building permits to contracted code agencies: its home page, read October 12, 2026, says "FOR BUILDING PERMITS PLEASE CONTACT EITHER" two named firms, its Contact Us page lists the two firms under "Township Building Code Official," and its Applications page posts a building permit application from each. The Township's Chapter 190 says "The Township hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act." The Township office is at 406 Old Ash Road, Mercer. The Township's Chapter 190, Construction Codes, Uniform (Ord. No. 2004-05, adopted June 14, 2004, read October 12, 2026 on eCode360) says "The UCC is hereby adopted and incorporated by reference as the Building Code of the Township" and, in section 190-6C, that "any permits required by Township ordinances, or state or federal statutes or regulations, which are not superseded by the UCC, including but not limited to zoning, driveway, sewage, highway or NPDES permits, as applicable, shall continue to be required." Chapter 190 names no roof work and no code edition. A search of the whole Township Code on eCode360 for "roof" (every result page) and for "reroofing" found definitions, solar and sign rules and a rental-property maintenance standard, and no section that requires or exempts a permit for roofing. The Township's chapter and pages read name no residential code edition.

Springfield Township's pages do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Township's 2026 fee resolution (Resolution 16-2025, a scanned document read from its rendered pages) lists "Building permit and application review fees" as assessed "according to the fee schedule, inspection, and administration services of the Third-Party Administrator," and the agency fee schedules attached to it list "Renovations (reroofing, alterations, changes of occupancy, redesigning spaces, remodeling, etc.)" only under its commercial fees, with no residential reroofing line. The first agency's building permit application, headed "PLEASE RETURN ALL APPLICATIONS TO SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP," lists "Repair" among its Type of Work boxes and "ROOF FRAMING PLAN" among its residential plan requirements, and the Township's Zoning Permit Application lists "Alteration" among its Type of Permit boxes. None of these says whether a house reroof needs a permit. The Township's Chapter 190, Construction Codes, Uniform (Ord. No. 2004-05, adopted June 14, 2004, read October 12, 2026 on eCode360) says "The UCC is hereby adopted and incorporated by reference as the Building Code of the Township" and, in section 190-6C, that "any permits required by Township ordinances, or state or federal statutes or regulations, which are not superseded by the UCC, including but not limited to zoning, driveway, sewage, highway or NPDES permits, as applicable, shall continue to be required." Chapter 190 names no roof work and no code edition. A search of the whole Township Code on eCode360 for "roof" (every result page) and for "reroofing" found definitions, solar and sign rules and a rental-property maintenance standard, and no section that requires or exempts a permit for roofing. 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 a house reroof needs a permit; ask the Township office (Township Administrator, 724-748-4999) or the contracted code agencies before starting. The office is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Wednesday 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Read for this answer: the Township's home, Applications, Forms, Ordinances and Contact Us pages; its Chapter 190 and the code-wide eCode360 searches; the 2026 fee resolution with its agency fee exhibits; the Township's Zoning Permit Application; and the residential building permit application the first agency posts. The second agency's application, the Township's Chapter 425 zoning permit sections and its floodplain chapter were not read in full.