The Broomfield City Council on Tuesday extended its six-month moratorium on new oil and gas development.

At is April 9 meeting, the council directed city staff to craft amendments for Broomfield’s oil and gas regulations in the wake of Senate Bill 19-181, legislation that allowed for more local control over oil and gas development. Then on May 28, the council halted the processing and approval of applications for new operations.

“The U.S. Supreme Court and courts in Colorado have found moratoria to be legally permissible and useful land use regulation tools if they are adopted for a reasonably short duration to allow for effective governmental decision making,” described a memo to the mayor and council from the city and county’s manager, attorney, and deputy attorney.

The memo recommended an additional six month extension to June 4 to accommodate a December public workshop and “additional study.”

The Colorado Petroleum Council called Broomfield’s decision “deeply disappointing” in a statement.

“This is particularly discouraging to the women and men in our industry who work each day to prioritize public health and safety. In Broomfield and across Colorado, our operators lead the nation in ensuring that energy development is done safely and responsibly in collaboration with the priorities of Colorado communities,” it said.

Editor’s note: This story has been clarified to read that the Colorado Petroleum Council, a chapter of the American Petroleum Institute, is the entity that issued the statement.