Direct, Independent News for Dubuque & the Tri-States
Public Records Belong to the Public
Real Dubuque News (RDN) is Dubuque’s independent, direct-to-the-public daily newsroom. We cover what happens across the Key City and neighboring Tri-State communities every single day—from votes at City Hall and county board decisions to food safety inspections, police dispatches, and breaking regional news.
You shouldn’t have to navigate confusing government portals, pay for expensive subscriptions, or file formal open records requests just to see how your tax dollars are being spent or what happened down your street. We pull official public records into daylight, verify the details, and present them in plain English.
What We Cover
Our newsroom focuses on the core issues that impact daily life for Dubuque residents and families:
City Hall & Local Government
Dubuque City Council agendas, council votes, zoning decisions, public works contracts, and county supervisor meetings. We track how local leaders vote on ordinances, taxes, and development.
Food Safety & Health Inspections
Routine and complaint-driven health inspections from restaurants, delis, and cafeterias across Dubuque County, detailing sanitary conditions and critical state code violations.
Regional Wire & Community
Tri-State weather warnings, highway closures, river traffic, neighborhood developments, and community notices across Dubuque, Jo Daviess, and Grant counties.
Courts & Public Safety
Dubuque Police dispatches, Sheriff’s bookings, state court dockets, and bond determinations, published directly from official law enforcement and judicial records.
Open Records & Iowa Law
Under Iowa Code Chapter 22 (Iowa Open Records Law), records created by city, county, and state agencies belong to the citizens of Iowa. That includes council proceedings, budget records, restaurant inspection reports, and law enforcement dispatches.
Real Dubuque News organizes and hosts these public records with zero paywalls, zero login restrictions, and zero subscriptions. If government is doing work in our community, the records should be free and accessible to everyone.
Presumption of Innocence
We strictly respect the constitutional foundation of the justice system: every person accused, arrested, or booked on criminal charges is legally presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
A booking log or charge represents a formal allegation at a moment in time; it is not a finding of guilt. If your charges were dismissed, dropped, deferred, or expunged by court order, our newsroom will review court verification and update or remove records accordingly. See our Expungement & Record Policy for details.
Send a News Tip
Many of our best stories come directly from residents. If you see breaking news, have an issue with city services, spot a safety concern, or have information the community needs to know, send it our way.
You can reach us through our Confidential Tip Line. Submissions can be completely anonymous, or you can leave your contact info if you’re open to an editor reaching back out.
Corrections & Accuracy
We take accuracy seriously. If you spot a factual error in any story, council recap, or record, let us know via our Newsroom Desk. When an error is verified, we correct it quickly and transparently.
Newsroom Contact & Channels
News Tips: realdubuque.news/tips
Social Media: Connect on Facebook and Instagram
News Syndication: RSS Feed at realdubuque.news/feed.xml