DUBUQUE, Iowa — The Dubuque City Council met Monday evening, September 21, 2026, to consider a revised six-month moratorium on hyperscale data centers within city limits.

The item returned after the council postponed action at its September 8 meeting. At that earlier session, members directed City Attorney Crenna Brumwell to tighten the proposed ordinance. The revised version sets a clearer definition of hyperscale facilities and maintains a temporary pause lasting until late March 2027.

According to information from the meeting, Brumwell indicated it is in the city’s best interest to pass an ordinance. The updated measure defines a hyperscale data center as one with 5,000 or more servers. Facilities meeting or exceeding that threshold would be subject to the temporary restrictions while the city develops longer-term regulations. City leaders noted they would coordinate further action on the moratorium if needed.

The six-month pause is intended to give staff time to draft a more comprehensive “hybrid” data center ordinance. That longer-term ordinance would address issues such as energy demand, water use, environmental impacts, noise, and placement standards. The process is expected to include additional public input opportunities.

Public feedback has played a significant role. A city survey earlier this summer drew nearly 3,800 responses, with about 76 percent of respondents opposing data centers in Dubuque. Energy use, water consumption, and environmental effects ranked as the top concerns. The city has stated that no formal annexation petition, site plan, utility request, or development agreement for a data center within city limits has been submitted.

The city’s action comes against the backdrop of a separate 12-month moratorium already in place in unincorporated areas of Dubuque County. That county pause, adopted in May 2026 and later refined, remains in effect into May 2027 while county officials develop their own ordinance.

As of late Monday night, official minutes and a full vote tally had not yet been posted on the city’s website or agenda portal. Meeting video is available on the City of Dubuque Government YouTube channel. Residents can monitor cityofdubuque.org/datacenters and the CivicClerk agenda portal for the formal record and any next steps on the permanent ordinance.