SB888

Regular Session

Relating to the attorney general's defense of a district or county attorney against certain lawsuits in federal court.

LowStandard timeline

Low Cost

Effective:2025-09-01

Enforcing Agencies

Office of the Attorney General

Compliance Analysis

Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation

Implementation Timeline

Effective Date: September 1, 2025
Compliance Deadline: Immediate Strategic Review. While there is no operational compliance, legal actions filed in federal court *before* September 1, 2025, are grandfathered under current law and generally exclude automatic OAG intervention.
Agency Rulemaking: The OAG is not required to publish public rules, but will develop internal protocols determining which cases merit state intervention. This lack of public criteria creates a "strategic gray zone" regarding which disputes will attract state resources.

Immediate Action Plan

Audit Pending Disputes: Identify any potential federal claims your business intends to file against local prosecutors regarding state regulations.
File Before 09/01/2025: If litigation is inevitable, file prior to the effective date to lock in the current procedural landscape and avoid automatic OAG statutory authority to intervene.
Review Insurance Limits: Consult with your broker regarding Legal Defense Insurance and D&O policies to ensure limits are sufficient for prolonged litigation against state-level opposition.
Update Risk Models: Adjust your legal risk matrix to reflect that a dispute with a local county is no longer contained to that county if it touches on state statute enforcement.

Operational Changes Required

Contracts

Indemnification Clauses: Review Master Service Agreements (MSAs) where you indemnify vendors or partners for legal costs related to regulatory disputes. If a dispute escalates to federal court, the opposing counsel may now be the OAG rather than a local county office, significantly increasing the duration and cost of the defense you are funding.

Hiring/Training

Legal Strategy: In-house counsel must adjust risk assessments. Training is not required for general staff, but government affairs teams must understand that threatening federal litigation against a local prosecutor now invites state-level intervention.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

None: This statute governs the attorney-client relationship between the OAG and local prosecutors; it imposes no burden of production on private enterprise.

Fees & Costs

Litigation Budgeting: There are no statutory fees. However, businesses engaged in federal litigation against local prosecutors must increase legal reserves. Litigating against the OAG typically involves more aggressive motion practice and deeper resources than litigating against rural or mid-sized county attorney offices.

Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations

"Relates to Enforcement": The statute allows OAG intervention if a case "relates to the enforcement of a state statute." This is broad. We anticipate the OAG will interpret this aggressively to intervene in tangential disputes involving environmental or labor regulations.
Discretionary Intervention: The OAG *may* defend, but is not required to. This introduces a political variable; the OAG is likely to prioritize cases that align with the state administration's policy goals while ignoring others.
Control of Litigation: The law does not specify who acts as "lead counsel" when the OAG intervenes alongside a local DA. Expect friction and procedural delays in court as the OAG and local prosecutors determine case strategy.

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Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.

Legislative Timeline

This bill's path through the Texas Legislature

TopicsCourts Courts--general Courts--prosecuting Attorneys Lawyers Attorney General

Official Analysis

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BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 888
89R2995 TSS-F	By: Kolkhorst
	State Affairs
	2/19/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

In 2022, several Texas county attorneys were named as defendants in a federal lawsuit challenging the implementation of a recent state law. County attorneys named in the lawsuit sought out representation from the Texas office of the attorney general which declined to offer representation, alleging an absence of statutory authority for representing a county attorney.

Current law gives authority to the Texas attorney general to defend a district attorney but does not give explicit authority to defend a district attorney for enforcement of a state statute. In addition, current law is silent on the ability of the attorney general to defend a county attorney in any matter.

S.B. 888 makes clear that the attorney general has authority to defend a district attorney or county attorney in federal court if the cause of action relates to the enforcement of a state statute and the county attorney or district attorney requests assistance in the defense.

As proposed, S.B. 888 amends current law relating to the attorney general's defense of a district or county attorney against certain lawsuits in federal court.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends the heading to Section 402.024, Government Code, to read as follows:

Sec. 402.024.� DEFENSE OF DISTRICT ATTORNEY, COUNTY ATTORNEY, OR GRAND JUROR.

SECTION 2. Amends Section 402.024, Government Code, by adding Subsection (c), to authorize the attorney general to defend a state district attorney or a county attorney in an action in a federal court if the district or county attorney is a defendant because of the district or county attorney's position, the cause of action relates to the enforcement of a state statute, and the district or county attorney requests the attorney general's assistance in the defense.

SECTION 3. Makes application of Section 402.024, Government Code, as amended by this Act, prospective.

SECTION 4. Effective date: September 1, 2025.

Senate Authors

Sen. Lois KolkhorstRepublican · Primary Author

House Sponsor

Rep. Jeff LeachRepublican · Primary Sponsor

Bill Text(with markup)

S.B. No. 888

View bill text in multiple formats on Texas Legislature website

Fiscal NoteView Original

	AN ACT
	relating to the attorney general's defense of a district or county
	attorney against certain lawsuits in federal court.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. The heading to Section 402.024, Government Code,
	is amended to read as follows:
	Sec. 402.024. DEFENSE OF DISTRICT ATTORNEY, COUNTY
	ATTORNEY, OR GRAND JUROR.
	SECTION 2. Section 402.024, Government Code, is amended by
	adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
	(c) The attorney general may defend a state district
	attorney or a county attorney in an action in a federal court if:
	(1) the district or county attorney is a defendant
	because of the district or county attorney's position;
	(2) the cause of action relates to the enforcement of a
	state statute; and
	(3) the district or county attorney requests the
	attorney general's assistance in the defense.
	SECTION 3. Section 402.024, Government Code, as amended by
	this Act, applies only to a court action filed in federal court on
	or after the effective date of this Act. A court action filed
	before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
	effect on the date the action was filed, and the former law is
	continued in effect for that purpose.
	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


February 26, 2025

TO:	Honorable Bryan Hughes, Chair, Senate Committee on State Affairs

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB888 by Kolkhorst (Relating to the attorney general's defense of a district or county attorney against certain lawsuits in federal court.), As Introduced

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

The bill allows for the Office of the Attorney General to defend district or county attorneys in lawsuits in federal court when a state statute is at issue.

According to the Office of the Attorney General, any additional work resulting from the provisions of the bill could be absorbed within current resources.

Local Government Impact

No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.

Source Agencies:

302 Office of the Attorney General

LBB Staff:

JMc, WP, LCO, JKe

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SB888

What does Texas SB888 do?

SB888 authorizes the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to provide legal defense for District and County Attorneys in federal lawsuits challenging the enforcement of state statutes. While this creates no new regulatory filings for your business, it significantly elevates the litigation risk and cost profile for any company seeking federal injunctive relief against local enforcement of state laws. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: September 1, 2025 Compliance Deadline: Immediate Strategic Review.

Who authored SB888?

SB888 was authored by Texas Senator Lois Kolkhorst during the Regular Session.

When was SB888 signed into law?

SB888 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 24, 2025.

Which agencies enforce SB888?

SB888 is enforced by Office of the Attorney General.

How urgent is compliance with SB888?

The compliance urgency for SB888 is rated as "low". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.

What is the cost impact of SB888?

The cost impact of SB888 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.

What topics does SB888 address?

SB888 addresses topics including courts, courts--general, courts--prosecuting attorneys, lawyers and attorney general.

Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025

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