SolarRisk Tracker / Explore / TN / Grundy County

Grundy County County, TN — Solar Development Risk Assessment

Local solar ordinance barriers, board sentiment, and utility policies that affect development timelines and risk.

59.2
Risk Grade
Poor
Grundy County scores C due to the combination of plateau/mountain terrain eliminating most viable sites, worsening anti-solar political trajectory aligned with Appalachian coal-heritage county networks, high practical compliance stringency despite minimal formal ordinance (because terrain + politics combine to create real barriers), and high uncertainty from very small county government volatility.
Assessment Snapshot
Population
13,427
State Rank
#45
Compliance
52%
Trajectory
55

Moratorium Status

✓ No Active Moratorium
No Moratorium

Ordinance & Regulations

Setback Requirements
No county-specific solar setbacks. State minimums apply. Plateau terrain and forest coverage provide natural barriers to large solar installations.
Zoning Mechanism
Grundy County Planning Commission (very limited capacity): CUP in Agricultural/Rural zoning per SB 2373 (2022). Extremely limited planning staff.
Acreage Caps
None codified.
Density Caps
None codified.
Spacing Rules
None codified.
Size Restrictions
None codified.

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis
Mixed-resistant — coal heritage community with complicated relationship to energy transition; some residents interested in solar lease income given extreme poverty, but cultural/political resistance to solar as an energy replacement narrative is present; very limited viable terrain anyway
Basis for Assessment
Grundy County is Tennessee's second-poorest county (after Lake) by median income; historical coal dependence has left a legacy of skepticism about energy transition narratives even when individual landowner economics might favor solar leasing; plateau/mountain terrain makes large solar installations essentially infeasible; very limited planning capacity
Political Risk Factors
Worsening
Board Members
County Mayor Michael Brady | R | Aug 2026 County Commission (12 members); verify at grundycountytn.gov

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator
TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority)
Utilities
Sequachee Valley Electric Cooperative (TVA distributor), Tennessee Valley Authority (wholesale)
State Permitting Process
County zoning authority under SB 2373 (2022); no state solar preemption; conditional use permit or special exception typically required; decommissioning bond often required; setback standards increasingly codified
State Incentives
Federal ITC eligible; no Tennessee state solar tax credit; TVA Green Power Switch program available

Development Activity

Active/Completed Projects
No confirmed utility-scale solar approvals in Grundy County.
Denied/Withdrawn Projects
No confirmed denials; virtually no developer activity.

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Last verified: 2026-04-02 | SolarRisk Tracker | Data sources: Government records, utility filings, public meeting minutes