Washington state House lawmakers have reinstated a controversial email auto-deletion policy, allowing most legislative emails, including those about bills and communications with lobbyists, to be permanently erased after 30 days. The move has drawn criticism from transparency advocates who say it weakens the public’s ability to scrutinize how laws are made. 

According to reporting from The Seattle Times, the change went into effect July 30, following an internal email to lawmakers that outlined new retention guidelines. Under the updated policy, only emails from the prime sponsor of a bill must be kept. All other communications about legislation are considered “transitory” and can be deleted once the lawmaker no longer needs them. 

“If the primary sponsor was all it took to get legislation passed, then I guess their communications would be the only important ones. But they’re not,” said Joan Mell, attorney for the Washington Coalition for Open Government. “Bills get amended, and those amendments mean something, and they come from somewhere, and they’re intended to do something for somebody.” 

This shift reverses a suspension of auto-deletion that began during a legal battle between the state Legislature and several news outlets, including The Seattle Times and The Associated Press. The lawsuit challenged lawmakers’ practice of withholding public records, and the courts ultimately ruled in favor of the media. In response, legislators attempted to pass a bill exempting themselves from the state’s public records law, but it was vetoed following widespread public backlash. 

Meanwhile, state agencies are still bound by retention laws that prohibit automatic deletion of all emails after a short period. Critics argue that giving lawmakers a different standard sets a troubling precedent. 

The Washington Senate has not reinstated auto-deletion but has acknowledged rising concerns about email storage and the management of outdated records. 

Posted: August 12, 2025
Category: Brechner News
Tagged as: Brechner FOI Project, Brechner Freedom of Information Project, David Cuillier, FOI, FOIA, Government Transparency, open records laws, Secrecy Tracker