Roofing in West Providence 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, West Providence Township takes land improvement permit applications at its Township Office, 83 East 5th Avenue, Everett, and its Links page lists PMCA, the Pennsylvania Municipal Code Alliance, Inc.; the Township's Land Use Permit Checklist says "Please contact your local municipal office or the local Pa Municipal Code Alliance, Inc. office if you have any questions about the process for obtaining a building permit," and Section 5 of its Land Improvement Permit Ordinance says "The applicant for all projects subject to the Uniform Construction Code, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, shall be referred to appropriate agency for the proper administration thereof." PMCA lists a Bedford Office at 125 S. Richard Street, Suite 102, Bedford. The Township's own ordinance adopting the Uniform Construction Code is not published on its website, whose Forms, Documents, and Ordinances page lists no such ordinance, or in the online code libraries of General Code (eCode360), American Legal Publishing, Municode or Code Publishing, so it was not read for this record. The Township's pages name no code edition; PMCA's ice barrier sheet says "All Municipalities Served by PMCA follow and enforce the provisions of the 2018 International Residential Code (IRC)," and this record has not read the 2018 edition's text and does not decide which edition PMCA applies.

West Providence Township's pages and ordinance read for this record do not say whether a house reroof needs a permit. Section 1 A 1 of the Township's Land Improvement Permit Ordinance (adopted November 1, 2004, read October 10, 2026) says "It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, business or corporation to undertake, or cause to be undertaken, any construction or development within the Township of West Providence prior to or without the issuance of a land improvement permit from the Township," and Section 2 defines "Construction" as "the construction, reconstruction, renovation, repair, extension, alteration or relocation of a building or structure." Section 3 says "Land improvement permits shall be required before any construction, development, demolition, razing or relocation of new or existing buildings is undertaken within the Township of West Providence." The ordinance names no roof work. Section 1 A 2 says "A land improvement permit shall not be required for minor repairs to existing buildings or structures, unless such repairs are subject to the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code," and does not define "minor repairs" or set an area, percentage or cost limit; this record does not decide whether a house reroof is a "minor repair." A December 9, 2024 amendment changed only the fee section and says "All other parts or portions of the Township's Land Improvement Permit Ordinance are hereby re-affirmed." The Township has published nothing on reroofs: its website lists the ordinance, the Land Improvement Permit Application and the Land Improvement Permit Fee Schedule (2025-01), and none of them names roof work. The Application asks for the "TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION" with the examples "New home, mobile home, addition, renovation; square feet, number of rooms, etc.," and the fee schedule runs by estimated cost from "LESS THAN $1,000.00 $ 5.00" up. 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 is a Township permit, separate from the Uniform Construction Code building permit PMCA issues. For the Uniform Construction Code building permit, PMCA's website answers its question "I am re-roofing my residential structure - do I need a building permit?" with a letter dated July 20, 2018 and addressed "Dear Municipal Official," which names no municipality and says "a residential Re-roof still requires compliance with the provisions of the UCC but does not require a building permit"; PMCA's Re-Roof Application Packet says "A Building Permit is required if there is a structural repair." Neither mentions the Township's land improvement permit. This record does not state whether a permit is required for a house reroof in West Providence Township; ask the Township Office at 814-652-5943 and PMCA's Bedford Office at 814-310-2326 before starting. The Township Office is open 8 AM to 3:30 PM, Monday to Friday. Read for this answer: the Township's home, About, Township Government Officials, Links and Forms, Documents, and Ordinances pages; its Land Improvement Permit Ordinance and the 2024 amendment (scanned files, read from the rendered page images), its Land Improvement Permit Application (also scanned), its Land Improvement Permit Fee Schedule (2025-01) and its Land Use Permit Checklist; and PMCA's Locations, FAQ and Permit Applications pages, its re-roof letter, Re-Roof Application Packet and ice barrier sheet. The Township's Uniform Construction Code ordinance was not found published and was not read.