On October 20, 2026, the Memphis City Council rejected a proposed 18-month moratorium on new data center developments in a 6-6 tie vote. The decision follows intense public opposition and environmental concerns over SpaceXAI's Colossus supercomputer operations and gas-powered turbines in the region. Instead, the council passed a substitute ordinance 7-5 establishing permanent land-use rules and a shorter 135-day pause on new permits.
Memphis City Council votes on ordinance 5982 moratorium
- ▪The proposed 18-month data center moratorium (Ordinance 5982) was sponsored by Memphis City Council members JB Smiley Jr., Jerri Green, Jana Swearengen-Washington, and Dr. Michalyn Easter-Thomas.
- ▪On October 20, 2026, the Memphis City Council rejected a proposed 18-month moratorium on new data center developments in a 6-6 tie vote.
- ▪Memphis City Councilwoman Yolanda Cooper-Sutton was absent for the October 20, 2026 data center vote due to a family emergency in Mississippi, leaving the council tied 6-6.
Memphis City Council passes substitute ordinance 5986
- ▪Memphis City Council members Chase Carlisle, J. Ford Canale, Edmund Ford Sr., Rhonda Logan, Philip Spinosa, Dr. Jeff Warren, and Janika White voted in favor of Ordinance 5986.
- ▪Memphis City Councilwoman Jerri Green criticized Ordinance 5986 during the October 20, 2026 meeting, stating council members received the multi-page substitute on short notice without a redline.
- ▪Memphis City Council members Jana Swearengen-Washington, Dr. Michalyn Easter-Thomas, Jerri Green, JB Smiley Jr., and Pearl Eva Walker voted against Ordinance 5986.
- ▪On October 20, 2026, the Memphis City Council voted 7-5 to pass Ordinance 5986, a substitute measure establishing data center standards and a 135-day pause on new permits.
- ▪Ordinance 5986 bans routine evaporative and once-through cooling, requires closed-loop water systems, and phases in renewable and non-carbon electricity for data centers in Memphis.
Mayor Paul Young's policy review
- ▪Memphis Mayor Paul Young issued an executive order establishing a 90-day policy review to develop recommendations for regulating large and hyperscale data centers.
- ▪The office of Memphis Mayor Paul Young stated in a press release that his 90-day policy review would run concurrently with city council deliberations.
Fallout and protests from the October 6 council meeting
- ▪Memphis City Council Chairwoman Jana Swearengen-Washington suspended Councilwoman Yolanda Cooper-Sutton for 30 days from two committee duties following decorum violations at the October 6, 2026 meeting.
- ▪On October 20, 2026, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas L. Parker issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Memphis City Council from banning activist KeShaun Pearson and Tennessee Rep. Justin Pearson from public council meetings.
- ▪An October 6, 2026 Memphis City Council meeting ended prematurely in public protests and a lobby altercation after council members voted 7-5 to postpone action on the data center moratorium.
SpaceXAI developments in Southaven
- ▪SpaceXAI offered to buy the homes of Southaven, Mississippi residents in exchange for their agreement not to join a class-action lawsuit against the company.
- ▪SpaceXAI installed gas-powered turbines at its Colossus 2 facility in Southaven, Mississippi to supply power for its Grok artificial intelligence chatbot.
Turbine noise and emission concerns
- ▪Memphis residents filed official noise complaints against SpaceXAI citing continuous noise pollution and physical vibrations caused by the company's data center turbines.
- ▪Tennessee state officials raised official concerns regarding dangerous air emissions produced by SpaceXAI data center turbines.
NAACP Clean Air Act lawsuit against SpaceXAI
- ▪On October 20, 2026, a Mississippi federal judge blocked a Trump administration and Department of Justice motion to dismiss the NAACP lawsuit against SpaceXAI.
- ▪The NAACP filed a federal Clean Air Act lawsuit against SpaceXAI over unpermitted methane gas-powered turbines operating at its data center facilities in Southaven, Mississippi.
National trends and impacts of data center growth
- ▪A Goldman Sachs analysis projected that energy demand from data centers could contribute to a 6% national increase in U.S. electricity bills over the next year.
- ▪According to tracking firm Cleanview, technology companies have more than 2,000 data centers in planning stages across the United States to support artificial intelligence expansion.
- ▪A September 2026 Pew Research Center survey found that over half of Americans are uncomfortable with a new data center operating in their local area.
- ▪A CNN review of over 100 police reports filed since 2025 identified widespread threats against data centers and public officials, including bomb threats and calls for violence.
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