7 AI policy moves you should know about — week of June 16, 2026
Tennessee's data-center moratorium wave spreads to three more communities, Nashville's mayor backs a ban, and California's insurance-AI gap gets filled.
AI Laws USA tracks every U.S. federal, state, county, and city AI law on a single live map at ailawsusa.com. Here are seven policy moves we added or updated this week, with sources and links to each entry's full detail page.
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MORATORIUM
1. Cedar Hill, TN — two-year data center moratorium
Cedar Hill, TN (Robertson County) · Adopted, effective June 1, 2026Cedar Hill (Robertson County) enacted a two-year moratorium on data center permits through June 2028, citing rural preservation and infrastructure capacity concerns. Part of a broader June 2026 wave of Tennessee communities acting ahead of any state-level framework.
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MORATORIUM
2. McMinnville, TN — 18-month data center moratorium with impact-study requirements
McMinnville, TN (Warren County) · Adopted, effective June 9, 2026McMinnville approved an 18-month moratorium on new data center permits through December 2027, coupled with mandatory environmental and infrastructure impact studies before any future approval — one of the more stringent local frameworks in the state so far.
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MORATORIUM
3. Coffee County, TN — 12-month countywide moratorium
Coffee County, TN · Adopted by County Commission, effective June 9, 2026Coffee County Commission adopted a one-year countywide moratorium on data center development through June 2027. The vote came on the same day as McMinnville's, reflecting coordinated concern in the region about the pace of proposed data center siting.
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PROPOSED
4. Nashville, TN — Mayor O'Connell signs Executive Order 59 backing data center ban
Nashville, TN · EO signed June 16, 2026; moratorium ordinance pending second/third Metro Council readings (est. July 7)Mayor Freddie O'Connell signed Executive Order 59 directing city agencies to support the proposed Metro Council moratorium on new data center permits. The ordinance itself passed first reading 26-1 in May and returns for second and third readings in July. The EO does not itself enact the moratorium but puts the administration's full weight behind it.
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NEW LAW
5. California SB 1120 — Physicians Make Decisions Act (no AI-only healthcare denials)
California · Signed Sept 28, 2024; in effect since Jan 1, 2025Governor Newsom signed SB 1120, prohibiting health-plan and insurer algorithms from automatically denying, delaying, or modifying healthcare coverage unless a licensed physician approves the decision. The law amends both the Health & Safety Code (§ 1367.01) and the Insurance Code (§ 10123.135), making California the first state to require physician sign-off on all AI-driven prior-authorization and claims decisions. AI Laws USA newly indexed this as a gap fill — it was referenced in notes of other California insurance entries but not separately catalogued.
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NEW LAW
6. Washington — SSB 5886 digital-likeness rights confirmed effective June 11
Washington (state) · Effective June 11, 2026Washington's amended personality-rights law — which adds 'forged digital likeness' (AI-generated audio or video of a real person without consent) as an actionable tort — crossed the finish line June 11. The law raises the per-infringement civil penalty to $3,000 and adds noneconomic damages and injunctive relief. The 90-day post-signing window closed June 11 (signed March 16 by Gov. Ferguson, Ch. 69, 2026 Laws).
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PROPOSED
7. Spokane, WA — data center moratorium vote postponed
Spokane, WA · Vote delayed from June 15; next expected on or after June 22, 2026The Spokane City Council was expected to vote on a proposed one-year data center moratorium on June 15 but the item was delayed by at least a week. The measure was introduced by Council Members Dillon, Dixit, and Telis alongside Mayor Brown in response to multiple large-scale data center proposals near residential areas. Industry opposition and requests for additional public comment pushed the vote. AI Laws USA will re-verify the outcome by June 30.
Every entry above is updated as status changes — see the live map at ailawsusa.com and search any U.S. address to see which of these (plus federal + state baselines) apply to a specific location. New posts every Monday.