Regulations & Statutes

The Pennsylvania Construction Code Act (PCCA) is available below along with all amendments. Also available are the links to the three chapters of the Uniform Construction Code.

Chapter 401 (Uniform Construction Code Training and Certification of Code Administrators) was first approved in April 2002 and took effect on July 12, 2002. This chapter was amended and took effect on October 1, 2018.

Chapter 403 (Administration) was approved in December 2003 and first took effect on April 9, 2004. As of October 1, 2018, this chapter has adopted the 2015 International Codes and the various provisions amended by the UCC Review & Advisory Council (RAC). (PA Bulletin has advised the Department that the below links will not reflect the latest regulatory changes until May 2022.)

Chapter 405 (Elevators and Other Lifting Devices) was approved in December 2003 and first took effect on April 9, 2004. It was amended in 2006, and the revised chapter took effect December 31, 2006. Most recently, this chapter was amended on April 16, 2016.

The Pennsylvania Construction Code Act (Act 45 of 1999) established the basic requirements for the Uniform Construction Code. It has been altered thirteen times since becoming law by:

Act 43 of 2001: An act establishing electrical exemption (for residential construction based on religious beliefs).

Act 13 of 2004: An act establishing the 1992 CABO One and Two Family Dwelling Code stairway tread and riser requirements as the UCC standards for residential stairways, and mandating a $2.00 surcharge for each building permit issued by a municipality or third party agency.

Act 92 of 2004: An act amending several residential code requirements of the Uniform Construction Code.

Act 230 of 2004: An act providing for the use of municipal lateral standards, mandating the use of the latest ANSI standards for ski lift operations and repealing section 405.11(e) of the elevator and other lifting devices regulation.

Act 95 of 2005: An act providing requirements to be imposed on uncertified buildings by the Department (uncertified commercial buildings in opt-out municipalities and state-owned buildings) and by municipalities that have opted to enforce the Uniform Construction Code (uncertified buildings in their jurisdiction).

Act 108 of 2006: An act excluding from UCC requirements, the installation of aluminum or vinyl siding on existing residential and commercial buildings; allowing a code administrator to act in place of a lumber grading and inspection agency for lumber used in residential buildings; extending the religious exemption to include lumber or wood provisions applicable to single family homes and one-room school houses; and, relieving coal-fired residential boilers from the requirement that they carry an ASME stamp.

Act 157 of 2006: An act exempting mushroom growing houses; establishing additional requirements for appeals boards; establishing additional requirements pertaining to residential building permit applications and inspections; exempting work on equipment owned by public service agencies; establishing requirements related to code interpretations; creating additional requirements for municipal UCC change ordinances; allowing a code administrator to act in place of a lumber grading agency (for residential construction); establishing a religious exemption for plumbing requirements; and, increasing the building permit surcharge to $4.00, of which $2.00 will be utilized for contractor training.

Act 9 of 2007: An act specifying that residential concrete and masonry foundation walls shall be constructed in accordance with:

1. All provisions of section R404 of the 2006 International Residential Code and its successor codes except Section R404.1 and Tables R404.1(1), R404.1(2) and R404.1(3);
2. ACI 318, ACI 332, NCMA TR68-A or ACI 530/ASCE 5/TMS 402; or
3. Other approved structural standards

Act 39 of 2007: An act excluding from UCC requirements temporary structures that are erected for fairs, flea markets, arts and craft festivals or other public celebrations; are less than 1,600 feet in size; are erected for less than 30 days; and, are not a swimming pool, spa or hot tub. Municipalities may, however, elect to regulate these via a section 503(a) administrative change, but compliance must be limited to flame propagation criteria, electrical and fire extinguisher requirements.

The act also exempts pole barns from all UCC requirements, except for electrical requirements, if constructed on agricultural fairgrounds and used for agricultural and public display purposes.

Act 106 of 2008: An act establishing the Uniform Construction Code Review and Advisory Council. This 19-member council will advise the General Assembly (on UCC issues and proposed statutory changes) and the Department (as to whether the latest triennial International Codes should be adopted as published or with changes). See especially the new section 7210.107, the changes to sections 7210.304(a)(1)-(2), and the new section 7210.304(d). Act 1 of 2011: An act altering the triennial code adoption process and amending the duties and responsibilities of the UCC Review and Advisory Council; repealing the automatic sprinkler requirement for one- and two-family dwellings; establishing special energy conservation requirements for log homes; replacing the wall bracing requirements in the International Residential Code (IRC) 2009 with those found in the IRC 2006; and, specifying that industrialized housing will not be subject to any code provisions that have been omitted from adoption under the UCC. Click on the links below to access the amendments contained in the acts listed above.

Act 1 of 2011: An Act requiring The Uniform Construction Code Review and Advisory Council, in its review of the triennial ICC Codes (beginning with the publication of the 2012 ICC Codes), to:

• hold three public hearings: one in Harrisburg, one in the eastern region of the Commonwealth, and one in the western region of the Commonwealth
• issue a report to the Secretary of the Department of Labor and Industry within 12 months of the publication of the ICC Codes indicating the portions specified for adoption as Pennsylvania’s Uniform Construction Code which includes the impact that a provision may have upon the health, safety and welfare of the public. The economic and financial impact of the provision, as well as the technical feasibility of the provision must also be provided.

The Department of Labor and Industry must, within three months of receiving the Council’s report under section 107 (b.1), promulgate final-omitted regulations under the act of June 25, 1982, to adopt the triennial ICC Codes specified by the report as Pennsylvania’s Uniform Construction Code. The Department has no discretion to vary from the Council’s report in the drafting of the regulations.

The Department shall promulgate regulations updating accessibility standards under Chapter 3 by adopting Chapter 11 and Appendix E of the International Building Code of2015, and the 2015 International Existing Building Code, or its successor, by December 31 of the year of issuance of the new code.

Additionally, Act 1 of 2011 creates new statutory exemptions from the ICC Codes for specific building features such as log walls in residential buildings, automatic fire sprinkler systems in one- and two-family dwellings, and fire protection of certain floors, and wall bracings.

Act 1 of 2011’s statutory exemptions as to automatic fire sprinkler systems and fire protection of certain floors apply retroactively to January 1, 2010.

Act 35 of 2017: An act providing an exclusion for structures less than 1,000 square feet that are used to process maple sap, for seasonal farm stands and for structures used to load, unload, or sort livestock at a livestock auction facility.

Act 36 of 2017: An act requiring the re-review of the 2015 International Code Council (ICC) building codes; amending the make-up of the UCC Review and Advisory Council, the triennial review process and it’s timeline; permitting Philadelphia to pass an ordinance adopting the 2018 commercial ICC codes; raising the building permit fee from $4.00 to $4.50; creating a UCC Review and Advisory Council administrative account to pay for Council expenses; and providing for a local board of appeals to be created according to the UCC and municipal code officials to use Labor & Industry’s requirements for uncertified buildings without passing an ordinance; and establishing a six month statute of limitations for permit application submissions after regulations adopting updated building codes go into effect.

Act 45 (with all amendments up to and including the most recent amendments)

(Revised 12/10/2018)