Massie Secures 218 Signatures to Force Vote on Second Epstein Files Bill
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has gathered the signatures needed to force a House vote on new legislation that would let survivors and state prosecutors sue the Justice Department over Epstein records it continues to withhold.
Tommy Flynn
Massie announced Wednesday that his discharge petition for the Epstein Files Transparency Act II had reached the required 218 signatures. Democratic Rep. John Garamendi of California provided the final signature, according to House clerk records. Only four Republicans signed the petition: Massie himself, Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman of South Carolina, and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania. The remaining signatures came from Democrats.
The new bill builds on the original Epstein Files Transparency Act that Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna forced to the floor last year and that President Trump signed in November 2025. That law required the Department of Justice to release nearly all unclassified investigative records. The department has released more than three million pages, yet critics—including Massie, survivors, and members of the House Oversight Committee—say significant material remains withheld or heavily redacted.
The new measure would authorize state attorneys general, district attorneys, members of Congress, and Epstein victims to sue the attorney general for unlawfully withholding, redacting, delaying, or failing to publish required records. It would also give state and local prosecutors access to unredacted material needed for their own investigations and allow survivors to obtain their own unredacted files.
“I’m working closely with Reps. Jayapal, Leger Fernandez, and Khanna to get this to the floor for a vote soon,” Massie wrote on X. Under House rules, seven legislative days must elapse after a petition reaches 218 signatures before a discharge motion can be offered.
House Oversight Republicans released their final 137-page report on the Epstein investigation earlier this week. The report documented repeated federal investigative and prosecutorial failures but found no evidence implicating President Trump in Epstein’s crimes. The new discharge petition is a separate enforcement effort aimed at the remaining records.
Even if the House passes the bill, Senate Republican leaders could decline to take it up before the new Congress convenes in January.
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