County attorney flags indemnity changes in jail trash-compactor contract; commission approves

Utah County commissioners voted 2-0 on Sept. 22 to approve a contract amendment for a trash compactor at the county jail after the vendor requested several contract changes, including limits to indemnification language.

A county attorney’s office representative explained the vendor had new legal counsel and proposed a number of changes, three of which the county considered "deal breakers." Staff described one substantive change as limiting the vendor’s indemnity obligation so that the vendor would not indemnify the county where alleged injury stemmed from the county’s own negligence or from third parties; the attorney’s office said it declined to accept vendor requests that the county indemnify the vendor.

The attorney’s explanation stated: "They wanted us to indemnify them instead of them indemnifying us. We refused on that point, but they did want some limiting of their indemnification obligation." Commissioners were informed of the change and approved the contract with a recorded 2-0 vote.

The commission approved the item with staff’s caveat that the commission be aware of the revised indemnification language.