Knoxville City Council to consider one-year data center moratorium

News Clip0:38WATE 6 On Your Side·Knoxville, Knox County, TN·7/6/2026

Knoxville City Council is scheduled to consider an emergency ordinance that would implement a one-year moratorium on large data centers requiring 10 megawatts of power or more. This measure would allow the city time to develop new regulations for data center development with assistance from the Knoxville Knox County Planning.

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Gov: Knoxville City Council, Knoxville Knox County Planning

The Knoxville City Council is slated to vote on an emergency ordinance proposing a one-year moratorium on new data center construction within the city limits. The first reading of the ordinance is scheduled for Tuesday.

The proposed measure aims to halt the permitting, construction, and development of large data centers that demand 10 megawatts of power or more. The intent behind the moratorium is to provide city officials with time to formulate and implement new regulations governing data center operations, with input from the Knoxville Knox County Planning department.

The discussion comes as other cities and counties across Tennessee have also begun considering similar moratoriums or regulations concerning data center development.