Roofing in Washington Township (Westmoreland 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, Washington Township in Westmoreland County administers the Uniform Construction Code: Ordinance No. 135 (2004) says "The Township of Washington hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act," the Township's Building Codes page says the Township adopted the Uniform Construction Codes "for use in all building construction within the Township effective June 01, 2004," and the UCC Building Permit Application the Township posts is a Middle Department Inspection Agency (MDIA) permit application form. Section 2 of Ordinance No. 135 adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as amended from time to time" as the municipal building code; it changes nothing in the code's roofing provisions and names no edition, and the Township's permit pages name none.

Washington Township's pages name no reroofing or roof replacement as permit work or as exempt. Ordinance No. 135 adopts the Uniform Construction Code by reference and names no roof work either way. Ordinance No. 62 (1987, amended 1989 and 1993), which the Township lists as "Building Permits and floodplain requirements," says in Section 1.01 "It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, business or corporation to undertake, or cause to be undertaken, any construction or development anywhere within the Township of Washington unless a Building Permit has been obtained from the Building Permit Officer" and "A Building Permit shall not be required for minor repairs to existing buildings or structures," and defines a minor repair as "the replacement of existing work with equivalent materials for the purpose of its routine maintenance and upkeep." It names no roof work. It is the Township's flood plain management ordinance, enacted to comply with the Pennsylvania Flood Plain Management Act, and this record does not decide whether it reaches an ordinary house reroof outside flood-prone areas. The Township's Building Codes page (read October 9, 2026) answers "Do I need a permit?" for decks, swimming pools, land use and grading and says nothing on roofing. The posted UCC Building Permit Application and the Township's Residential Land Development Application for a Building Permit list no roofing category, and the Township's Building Permit Fee Schedule, in both its Uniform Construction Code (Appendix A, "Last updated 7/12/2012") and "Non-UCC" (Appendix B) parts, has no roofing line. 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." The Building Codes page says "Please contact the office for a customer assistance guide when completing a building permit application," and the fee schedule says "Fees shall be doubled where work requiring a permit has commenced prior to receipt of the permit." The Township office, 724-727-3515, is open Monday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Read for this answer: Ordinance No. 135, Uniform Construction Code, in full; Ordinance No. 62 with its 1989 and 1993 amendments, a scanned document read in full from its page images; the Township's Building Codes, Applications and Forms, Ordinance List and Office Hours pages; the UCC Building Permit Application, read from its page images; the Residential Land Development Application for a Building Permit; and the Building Permit Fee Schedule.