The House of Representatives on Tuesday voted 427-1 to approve a bill that would compel the Justice Department to publicly release its files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The near-unanimous passage, which sends the legislation to the Senate, marks a significant victory for a bipartisan group of lawmakers who had struggled for months to overcome opposition from House Republican leadership.
The effort, initiated by a discharge petition in July, bypassed House Speaker Mike Johnson’s control over which bills reach the floor. Despite initially urging supporters to dismiss the matter as a “hoax,” President Trump ultimately said he will sign the bill if the Senate also passes it.
The push for transparency comes years after Epstein, a well-connected financier facing charges of sexually abusing and trafficking underage girls, killed himself in a Manhattan jail in 2019. The bill’s supporters argue that the public deserves the truth about the case and potential accomplices.
The lone dissenting vote was cast by Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA), a fervent Trump supporter who chairs a subcommittee that had already subpoenaed the Justice Department for the files. Higgins argued that the bill, as written, could inadvertently injure innocent people mentioned in the records.
The bill’s fate now rests with the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has not committed to bringing the bill up for a vote, and Speaker Johnson has publicly stated he expects the Senate to amend the legislation to address what he called “serious deficiencies” regarding victim and witness privacy.
READ: Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy On Life In The U.S. Senate: ‘They Will Happily Train You To Be Crazy’
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