Michigan has once again proven that state FOIA laws and technology do not at all sync up. Because according to a recent report from Bridge Michigan, the state’s policy of automatically deleting chats on Microsoft Teams after 30 days, even when those chats involve important state business, leaves citizens in the dark on what’s really going on in their government.
In fact, many communications between state officials are permanently erased before the public (or journalists, or watchdogs) can ever request them under Michigan Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
It’s an unfortunate loophole and a product of legislation being reactive rather than proactive:
- Emails are kept for 7 years and remain accessible via FOIA.
- But chats, increasingly where real-time decisions and informal discussion happen, get wiped clean long before any oversight or archival can occur.
Officials claim the deletion policy is about “data storage” or “system efficiency,” not about hiding wrongdoing.
Yet there’s no mechanism to review or preserve chats before they vanish, meaning even if someone senses wrongdoing, by the time they try to FOIA the records, it’s way too late.
Why This Matters — And Why It’s Not Just a Quirk
This has some pretty big implications, and has the potential to impact multiple cases currently in the public eye.
Chat Platforms = The New Water Cooler
Modern governance increasingly happens on chat platforms: quick decisions, informal discussions, fast coordination. If those chats self-destruct, entire conversations with potential evidence of wrongdoing, corruption, or mismanagement would disappear before anyone can even ask to see them.
FOIA vs. Reality: The Law Exists, But the System Doesn’t Comply
The Michigan FOIA law is supposed to allow citizens to hold government accountable. But if records are routinely wiped before they can even be requested, especially records where meaningful decisions happen, the law becomes functionally hollow.
Secrecy Gains: This Isn’t Just Tech. It’s Policy.
This isn’t a glitch or oversight, it’s a deliberate policy choice left unaddressed. Michigan citizens have been pushing for FOIA reform and updates for years. House Leader Matt Hall has declined to touch it. As a result, it falls in the laps of leaders and administrations to decide how long to retain records. And right now, the decision is more or less, “let’s not keep them.” That sends a pretty loud message: transparency is optional.
With Prior Resistance to FOIA Reform, This Is the Pattern
This news lands against the backdrop of growing resistance from lawmakers in Michigan to expanding or strengthening FOIA. For example, proposals to update public-records laws to reflect modern communication methods like chats and text messages have been repeatedly blocked or ignored.
Which means deleting chats automatically only deepens the problem and it could become significantly worse if left unaddressed.
What Government Transparency Should Look Like (And What We Deserve)
In short, I believe this forces the legislature’s hand. It’s no longer “we can’t address it”, because it’s becoming a significant records crisis.
- All communications on platforms used by public employees, including chat messages, SMS, Teams, Slack, etc., should be treated as public records, just like emails.
- Automatic deletion policies should be replaced with retention policies that preserve records for a reasonable period (e.g. 5–7 years), especially if they concern public business.
- There must be a process for reviewing and archiving chats before deletion, especially when they may include decisions, planning, or policy discussions.
- Citizens and watchdogs should have full access to request records not just in traditional formats, but in modern digital chat logs, metadata, attachments, etc.
- State officials must stop hiding behind “data storage constraints” when storage is cheap and cloud-based, and instead commit to real transparency.
This Isn’t Just Michigan’s Problem. It’s a Trend.
Other states and even the federal government are starting to treat chat logs as equal to emails for public-records purposes. For example:
- Under federal guidance, many agencies now preserve chat messages as part of their official records.
- Some states have already banned automatic deletion of internal chats, recognizing that modern public business isn’t always conducted over formal memo or email.
Michigan’s continued resistance, both in refusing to expand FOIA and in allowing messages to vanish, signals that transparency isn’t particularly a priority… power is.
What You Can Do to Help Expose the Secrecy
- Demand your legislators support FOIA reform that explicitly covers chat logs, messaging apps, and other non-email communications.
- If you file a FOIA request for recent communications, demand proof. Ask when retention policies were applied, and whether deletion happened before your request.
- Support watchdog organizations, independent journalism, and transparency advocates who are pushing for reform.
- Publicize the problem: write op-eds, social-media blasts, hold community meetings. The more people know this is happening, the harder it becomes to hide it.
Because Justice — Real Justice — Depends On Visibility
A truly just government doesn’t get to decide what’s “official record” and what’s “private chat.” When communications are erased before we ever learn what was said, before we can scrutinize the process, we can’t call that governance. I would say “secrecy by default” is more accurate.
Michigan residents deserve more than blank slates and vanished messages. Because corruption, abuse, cover-ups, they flourish in the shadows. And if we don’t fight to shine light on them, then we’re not guarding justice — we’re surrendering it.
