Summary
Tennessee follows the Standard State Zoning Enabling Act lineage, delegating zoning authority from the state to local governments rather than zoning at the state level. The enabling law sits in Title 13, Chapter 7 of the Tennessee Code, which is split into two parallel grants: Part 1 (§ 13-7-101) empowers each county legislative body to zone the unincorporated portions of the county lying outside municipal corporations, and Part 2 (§ 13-7-201) empowers the chief legislative body of any municipality (board of aldermen, board of commissioners, or council) to zone within municipal boundaries. Both grants authorize regulation of building location, height, bulk, lot coverage, yards/open space, population density, and the use of buildings and land, exercised through the procedures in the chapter and in coordination with the relevant planning commission. Thus zoning power in Tennessee is held by counties (for unincorporated areas) and municipalities (within their limits); the state does not administer local zoning directly.
The delegation
§ 13-7-101. Grant of zoning power [County Zoning].
(a)(1) The county legislative body of any county is empowered, in accordance with the conditions and the procedure specified in this part, to regulate, in the portions of such county which lie outside of municipal corporations, the location, height and size of buildings and other structures, the percentage of lot which may be occupied, the sizes of yards, courts, and other open spaces, the density and distribution of population, the uses of buildings and structures for trade, industry, residence, recreation or other purposes, and the uses of land for trade, industry, residence, recreation, agriculture, forestry, soil conservation, water supply conservation or other purposes, and identify areas where there are inadequate or nonexistent publicly or privately owned and maintained services and facilities when the planning commission has determined the services are necessary in order for development to occur. Special districts or zones may be established in those areas deemed subject to seasonal or periodic flooding, and such regulations may be applied therein as will minimize danger to life and property, and as will secure to the citizens of Tennessee the eligibility for flood insurance under Public Law 1016, 84th Congress, or subsequent related laws or regulations promulgated under such provisions. Protection and encouragement of access to sunlight for solar energy systems may be considered in promulgating zoning regulations pursuant to this section. . . .
§ 13-7-201. Grant of power [Municipal Zoning].
(a)(1) For the purpose of promoting the public health, safety, morals, convenience, order, prosperity and general welfare, the board of aldermen, board of commissioners or other chief legislative body of any municipality by whatever title designated, and hereinafter designated as chief legislative body, is empowered, in accordance with the conditions and the procedure specified in this part and part 3 of this chapter, to regulate the location, height, bulk, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures, the percentage of the lot which may be occupied, the sizes of yards, courts and other open spaces, the density of population, and the uses of buildings, structures and land for trade, industry, residence, recreation, public activities and other purposes, and identify areas where there are inadequate or nonexistent publicly or privately owned and maintained services and facilities when the planning commission has determined the services are necessary in order for development to occur. Special districts or zones may be established in those areas deemed subject to seasonal or periodic flooding, and such regulations may be applied therein as will minimize danger to life and property, and as will secure to the citizens of Tennessee the eligibility for flood insurance under Public Law 1016, 84th Congress or subsequent related laws or regulations promulgated thereunder. Protection and encouragement of access to sunlight for solar energy systems may be considered in promulgating zoning regulations pursuant to this section.
Verification
Read the verification audit
Verified against the 2024 Tennessee Code (via Justia titling in search results), Tennessee's official MTAS county-zoning reference, FindLaw, and LawServer.
(a) Real & current statute: Confirmed. Tenn. Code Ann. § 13-7-101 ("Grant of zoning power") sits in Title 13 (Public Planning and Housing), Chapter 7 (Zoning), Part 1 (County Zoning, §§ 13-7-101–13-7-119). Tenn. Code Ann. § 13-7-201 ("Grant of power") sits in the same chapter, Part 2 (Municipal Zoning, §§ 13-7-201–13-7-212). Both appear in the current (2024) code; no indication of repeal.
(b) Genuine enabling authority: Confirmed. § 13-7-101 empowers the county legislative body to regulate (outside municipal corporations) the location, height and size of buildings, percentage of lot occupied, yards/open spaces, population density, and uses of buildings and land. § 13-7-201 empowers the chief legislative body of any municipality (board of aldermen, board of commissioners, or other chief legislative body) to regulate location, height, bulk, number of stories and size of buildings, lot coverage, yards/courts/open spaces, density, and uses of buildings/structures/land — phrased in the classic Standard State Zoning Enabling Act terms. These are the substantive grants of zoning power, not unrelated provisions.
(c) Authority model: Confirmed accurate. county_and_municipal — counties zone unincorporated areas outside municipalities (Part 1); municipalities zone within their limits (Part 2). No state-level zoning administration. Claimed title, chapter/part structure, and summary all match the statutory text.