TITLE attorney-general

DM—467(RQ—1001). The Honorable Bruce Isaacks, Criminal District Attorney, Carroll Courts Building, Fifth Floor, P.O. Box 2344, Denton, Texas 76202, concerning whether a hold and save harmless provision that requires a county to indemnify another party for damages creates a debt within the meaning of article XI, section 7 of the Texas Constitution.

SUMMARY. A hold and save harmless provision that obligates a county to indemnify a third party for damages arising from the acts of the third party creates a debt within the meaning of Article XI, section 7 and is therefore an obligation that the county may not undertake without taking certain steps. Whether Article XI, section 7 debt is created by a hold and save harmless provision that requires a county to indemnify a third party only for damages arising from county acts and does not expand the county's liability beyond its liability under existing law appears to be a question of first impression that has not been addressed by the courts.