State rules
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania uses three desks. The Department of Environmental Protection air program adopts the federal asbestos NESHAP and takes demolition and renovation notices, except in Philadelphia and Allegheny County, which run their own programs. The Department of Labor and Industry enforces the Asbestos Occupations Accreditation and Certification Act and requires at least a five-day notice for friable asbestos projects of more than 3 square or 3 linear feet, plus certification of listed occupations. DEP says its abatement and demolition notification fee will increase to $400 starting in January 2026 for counties other than those two. EPA lists all three: the state certification office, DEP NESHAP, and the two local air agencies. Pennsylvania is not an AHERA waiver state.
Checked against official sources on October 11, 2026. Rules and links change; confirm with the office listed before you act.
- Who runs the asbestos program
- Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for NESHAP notices; Department of Labor and Industry for occupation certification; separate programs in Philadelphia and Allegheny County
- Who must be licensed or accredited
- Labor and Industry certifies asbestos occupations and requires notice for friable projects over 3 square or linear feet. DEP takes the NESHAP demolition and renovation notice outside Philadelphia and Allegheny County.
- Official program page
- Official page →
DEP’s page says a project subject to NESHAP needs at least a ten-working-day notice. Contractors file through the online asbestos notification system after enrolling in the state’s ePermitting portal. The online system is explicitly not for Philadelphia or Allegheny County. Notices received by DEP since March 9, 2018, can be searched on the air-quality reports page. That search is a public check on whether a notice exists. It does not cover the two local programs. Allegheny County and Philadelphia contacts are on EPA’s state list, with their own phones.
Labor and Industry’s five-day occupation notice is a different clock from DEP’s ten-working-day NESHAP notice, and it starts at a much smaller amount of friable material: more than 3 square or 3 linear feet. A project can need both filings. Certification covers the occupations named in the act the DEP page points to. Paying the DEP fee does not certify the worker. The fee note is prospective: $400 starting in January 2026, for the DEP counties. This directory’s structured fee field stays null so the figure is read in the sentence that dates it.
Schools follow AHERA because Pennsylvania is not a waiver state. OSHA’s construction standard applies to employees. Before you hire, ask whether the building is in Philadelphia, Allegheny County, or the rest of the state, then match the notice office. Ask Labor and Industry whether the people on site are certified for a friable project over 3 feet, and ask DEP or the local air agency whether the ten-working-day NESHAP notice is on file.
Official resources in Pennsylvania
NESHAP notices, the 2026 fee note, and the labor-department certification act.
DEP, Labor and Industry, Allegheny County, and Philadelphia contacts.
Federal standard DEP adopted.
Worker-protection rule for crews.
Key facts for Pennsylvania
- DEP enforces the asbestos NESHAP and requires at least a ten-working-day notice when the project is subject to it.
- Philadelphia and Allegheny County are outside DEP’s online notification system.
- Labor and Industry requires at least a five-day notice for friable projects of more than 3 square or 3 linear feet.
- DEP says the notification fee will increase to $400 starting in January 2026 outside those two counties.
- DEP online notices since March 9, 2018, are searchable on the air-quality reports page.
- EPA lists separate contacts for state certification, DEP NESHAP, Allegheny County, and Philadelphia.
- Pennsylvania is not on EPA’s list of twelve AHERA waiver states.
What to do next
- Confirm the county before you pick DEP, Philadelphia, or Allegheny County.
- File the labor-department five-day notice and the NESHAP ten-working-day notice when both apply.
- Search DEP’s notice archive only for projects outside the two local programs.
- Ask for occupation certification, not only a DEP fee receipt.
Looking for your city or county in Pennsylvania?
We haven't found official program-level pages for Pennsylvania we can verify yet, so we don't show local numbers here rather than guess. Here's what to use instead, in order:
- General Start with the statewide information above. It applies across Pennsylvania, but cities and counties can add their own steps, fees or deadlines.
- Call to confirm Ask the official office. They have the current local rule, fee and form.Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Website →Phone: (717) 772-4758 (as listed on that page, checked Oct 4, 2026)Your city or county office: Local governments →Not sure who handles it locally? USAGov's free help line, 1-844-872-4681, or the Pennsylvania page on USA.gov can point you to the right office. - Know the current info? Tell us and include a link to the official page. We check every tip before it goes up.
Helpful guides
- What an asbestos inspection is
- NESHAP notification before demolition
- Asbestos rules for schools
- OSHA rules that protect asbestos workers