Rollin Horton files bills to restrict & regulate data centers in Nashville
Nashvillians deserve a say on data centers
To say there is a distrust of data centers in America is an understatement. A Gallup Poll shows 70% of Americans oppose them.
That statistic is even higher here in Tennessee, due to the damage Elon Musk has inflicted with the xAI Data Center in Memphis.
Recently, there’s been a lot of discussion about potential data centers in Nashville.
Although these have not been proposals in my district, many have expressed concern about the environmental impact of data centers on our community.
I looked to see what regulations were currently in place. The answer: none.
It’s the wild west. Data centers aren’t even a building type in our zoning code. Why? Because when our zoning code was written many moons ago, data centers didn’t exist.
This means, as of right now, there’s no rules governing where data centers can be built or how they can be operated. They could be built without council or community approval. That means no Planning Commission meeting, no public hearing, no Metro Council meetings, no public comment.
That’s insane.
As Chair of the Metro Council’s Planning and Zoning Committee, I cannot in good conscience sit by and do nothing. Nashvillians deserve a say on data centers.
Today, I filed a bill to restrict and regulate data centers.
Under my bill, BL2026-1391 hyperscale data centers (500,000 sqft+) like Elon Musk’s Data Center in Memphis would be completely restricted. To put that in perspective, that’s roughly the size of 2.5 Walmart Super Centers or 9 football fields.
Large data centers smaller than 500,000 sqft would require a special exemption by the Board of Zoning Appeals, undergo a public hearing process, and be subject to strict environmental and energy regulations.
Trust in technology is at an all time low. It’s important now more than ever to ensure public oversight and transparency.
I’m grateful to the 14 colleagues of mine who have already signed on to this bill as co-sponsors and to community organizations such as Stand Up Nashville who support strong regulations of data centers.
“We’ve seen the brown water, dirty air, and astronomical electricity bills that have harmed our neighbors due to data center developments,” said Maryam Abolfazli, Organizing Director for Stand Up Nashville. “This is a critical moment to implement regulations on data centers to prevent those outcomes. Right now residents in Nashville only become aware of data centers and their impacts after the fact. This is the moment to ban hyperscalers and protect our community.”
I will continue to keep you all apprised as this legislation works its way through the Metro Council.
As always, we are in this together.
-Rollin Horton