>>>In MOST case there are NO PAPER BALLOTS.
No, the digital images are taken of the paper ballot which are retained for 22 months. That is required by state law.
Voting machines contain NO PAPER.. just digital information which culminates in vote totals.
Those vote totals in the machines are like files on your hard drive, whether on your computer, tablet, or phone.. once they're erased they NO LONGER EXIST.. because NO paper version ever existed.