Epstein Files Transparency Act II Moves Forward in the House (9/21/26)

A second push to force the release of additional Jeffrey Epstein records advanced in the House after Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna said they had secured enough commitments to bring the Epstein Files Transparency Act II to the floor through another discharge petition. The maneuver closely mirrored the strategy used to pass the original Epstein Files Transparency Act in 2025, when supporters bypassed Speaker Mike Johnson after Republican leadership declined to schedule a vote. The new measure would strengthen enforcement of the existing transparency law by allowing Epstein survivors, state attorneys general and other officials to sue the Justice Department if records were unlawfully withheld, excessively redacted, delayed or concealed. Massie said Republicans Nancy Mace, Ralph Norman and Brian Fitzpatrick had joined him in supporting the petition alongside House Democrats, potentially giving organizers the 218 signatures required to force a vote without leadership’s permission.

The effort reflected growing frustration among lawmakers who argued that the original transparency law had not produced the complete disclosure they expected from the Justice Department. The second bill was designed to give outside parties an enforcement mechanism instead of leaving compliance almost entirely in DOJ’s hands, including expedited court review and access to records needed for state investigations. The discharge petition remained especially significant because it again placed Johnson and House leadership on the sidelines of an Epstein-related vote they had not chosen to bring forward themselves. By mid-September, the petition was nearing the 218-signature threshold, although the House’s early departure from Washington temporarily slowed the effort. The broader fight had therefore shifted from simply ordering the government to release Epstein records to creating legal consequences when lawmakers, survivors or state authorities believed the government was still improperly withholding them.


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Epstein Files Transparency Act sequel advances as House goes around Johnson again