COLUMBIA, S.C. (WACH, AP) -- South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley's office deletes emails between staffers because of limited storage space on servers and because the correspondence isn't considered important.
The State newspaper of Columbia reports it discovered the emails were being deleted after a Freedom of Information Act request.
Haley's office says former Gov. Mark Sanford's office also deleted emails between staffers because they would take up too much space. Haley's staffers do keep all emails she sends to the public.
“The governor and every member of our staff follow both the law and the long-standing policy of the Office of the Governor. We always have, and we always will,” said Haley spokesman Rob Godfrey.
The director of the South Carolina Press Association says emails between staffers in the governor's office are public records and should be kept.
"I think it's real important for the public to know, is there a memo going out to a department head? That should be preserved."
Historians say deleting the emails also hurts future generations who might want to study the Haley administration.
Haley's office says the Sanford Administration also deleted emails when they took up too much server space. Former Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer declined to comment on this story.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report)
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