Section 304. Revised or successor codes.
(a) Duties of department.--
(1) Subject to sections 105(c) and (d), 301(a)(3), (4), (5), (6) and (7), (c) and (d) and 302, within nine months of the receipt of the report under section 108(b), the department shall promulgate final-omitted regulations under the act of June 25, 1982 (P.L.633, No.181), known as the Regulatory Review Act, to adopt the council's decisions contained in the report without change. The regulations shall take effect as follows:
(i) Except as provided in subparagraph (ii), regulations adopted under this act shall become effective 33 months after the commencement of council review as provided for in section 108(a)(1)(i).
(ii) Regulations promulgated by the department as a result of the 2015 Code Review shall take effect October 1, 2018.
(2) Regulations promulgated under this subsection are exempt from:
(i) section 205 of the act of July 31, 1968 (P.L.769, No.240), referred to as the Commonwealth Documents Law; and
(ii) sections 204(b) and 301(10) of the act of October 15, 1980 (P.L.950, No.164), known as the Commonwealth Attorneys Act.
(3) Within nine months of the report under section 106(d)(3)(vi), the department shall promulgate final-omitted regulations under the act of June 25, 1982 (P.L.633, No.181), known as the Regulatory Review Act, to adopt the advisory board's decisions contained in the report without change. The regulations shall take effect 33 months after the commencement of the advisory board review as provided in section 106(d)(1). ((3) amended May 6, 2026, P.L.202, No.16)
(4) The department may contract with the ICC to establish and publish code manuals that contain the standards of the Uniform Construction Code. The department shall require in any contract under this paragraph that the documentation be made available on the department's publicly accessible Internet website.
(a.1) Continuity.--If an updated section is not adopted or modified under section 106 or 108, the relevant provisions of the existing sections shall remain in effect. ((a.1) amended May 6, 2026, P.L.202, No.16)
(b) International Fuel Gas Code.--((b) deleted by amendment Apr. 25, 2011, P.L.1, No.1).
(c) Prior permits, contracts and construction.--
(1) A construction permit issued under valid construction regulations prior to the effective date of regulations for a subsequent Uniform Construction Code or International Fuel Gas Code issued under this act shall remain valid, and the construction of any building or structure may be completed pursuant to and in accordance with the permit.
(2) If the permit has not been actively prosecuted within two years of the effective date of the regulation or the period specified by a municipal ordinance, whichever is less, the former permitholder shall be required to acquire a new permit.
(3) Where construction of a building or structure commenced before the effective date of the regulations for a subsequent Uniform Construction Code or International Fuel Gas Code issued under this act and a permit was not required at that time, construction may be completed without a permit.
(4) Where a design or construction contract was signed before the effective date of regulations for a subsequent Uniform Construction Code or International Fuel Gas Code issued under this act, the permit may be issued under the Uniform Construction Code or International Fuel Gas Code in effect at the time the design or construction contract was signed if the permit is applied for within six months of the effective date of the regulation or the period specified by a municipal ordinance, whichever is less.
(304 amended Oct. 25, 2017, P.L.356, No.36)
Compiler's Note: Section 4 of Act 16 of 2026 provided that all regulations are abrogated to the extent of any inconsistency with Act 16.
Compiler's Note: Section 304(a)(3) was declared unconstitutional on October 26, 2022, by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania in Pa. Builders Ass'n v. Dep't of Labor, 284 A.3d 1287 (2022).