Cheyenne committee hears hours of public comment on proposed 12‑month data‑center moratorium; makes no recommendation

Councilman Mark Moody on Tuesday asked the Cheyenne Public Service Committee to impose a temporary 12‑month moratorium on new data center approvals to give city staff time to study “the impact of data centers on the environment, on our electric rates, on the power grid, on water usage, and factors like health, safety, and welfare of our residents.” Moody, the ordinance sponsor, read the moratorium language into the record, saying, “The governing body hereby imposes a 12 month moratorium on the processing, consideration, approval, or issuance of any licenses, permits, approvals … that enable or authorize the establishment, construction, conversion of any building or structure to a data center.”

The mayor and city staff described existing studies and historical resource data but said some technical review would likely require outside experts. The mayor said he was unsure staff “has the expertise to do an environmental study,” and noted city utilities and the Board of Public Utilities can supply historical water‑use figures.

The committee then heard more than two hours of public testimony from residents, labor representatives, business groups and company officials. Supporters of the moratorium cited concerns about groundwater, long‑term cumulative impacts and the pace and scale of proposed projects. Ward 1 resident Patricia McCoy said residents had been given a “slow drip of information” about large annexations and warned against decisions made behind nondisclosure agreements. Heather Madrid, a Ward 1 resident, told the committee, “This temporary moratorium is legally justified due to the major planning gaps and the need for cumulative impact studies.”

Opponents, including union members and industry representatives, warned a pause would cost jobs and delay local hiring. Marcy Kindred, executive director of the Wyoming AFL‑CIO, said the union was “strongly opposed to hitting the pause button as an answer,” arguing that moratoria send projects elsewhere and that many safeguards already exist. Microsoft and other tech employers said data centers bring local training programs and high‑paying operational jobs; Microsoft representatives announced a community engagement session to answer technical questions.

After public comment, Councilman Laybourne moved to forward the moratorium to the governing body for further consideration; the motion “died for lack of a second,” and the chair announced that the committee would make no recommendation at this time. No formal vote on the ordinance occurred.

Next steps: the proposal could still be introduced and considered by the full governing board; staff was asked during the meeting to compile existing water, power and planning materials and to identify which studies would require outside consultants.