On November 18, 2025, the House and Senate approved the Epstein Files Transparency Act, directing the Justice Department to release unclassified records tied to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. The House passed the measure 427-1, and the Senate cleared it by unanimous consent, sending it to President Donald Trump, who has said he will sign it.
Lawmakers in both chambers on Tuesday advanced the Epstein Files Transparency Act (H.R. 4405), a bipartisan bill led by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif. The House approved the measure 427-1; Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., cast the lone no vote. Within hours, the Senate approved the House-passed bill by unanimous consent, avoiding a roll-call vote and sending the legislation to the White House. (washingtonpost.com)
Higgins said he opposed the bill out of privacy and due-process concerns, writing that it "abandons 250 years of criminal justice procedure" and could "injure thousands of innocent people — witnesses, people who provided alibis, family members." (abc17news.com)
The legislation requires the Justice Department to publish unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials related to Epstein’s prosecution, including those concerning Ghislaine Maxwell, flight logs and travel records, and references to government officials. The department may withhold victims’ personal information and materials that could jeopardize active investigations. Within 15 days of publication, DOJ must report to Congress what categories were released and withheld, summarize redactions, and list government officials and politically exposed persons named in the materials. (congress.gov)
Tuesday’s action capped months of intra-GOP tension. After initially dismissing the effort as a “Democrat hoax,” President Trump reversed course and urged Republicans to vote yes; he has since said he will sign the bill if it reaches his desk. (theguardian.com)
The House vote followed a rare discharge petition drive that forced floor consideration. The petition hit the 218-signature threshold on Nov. 12, when newly sworn-in Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., added her name; in all, four Republicans joined all Democrats to trigger the vote, according to The Washington Post and Reuters. (washingtonpost.com)
Survivors of Epstein’s abuse rallied at the Capitol before the vote, urging lawmakers — and the president — to keep the issue above politics. “I beg you, President Trump, please stop making this political. It is not about you,” survivor Jena-Lisa Jones told reporters. (wunc.org)
The push in Congress intensified after Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a cache of emails from Epstein’s estate on Nov. 12, including a 2019 message in which Epstein wrote that Trump “knew about the girls,” according to the Associated Press and The Washington Post. Trump has denied wrongdoing and said he cut ties with Epstein years ago. (washingtonpost.com)
Separately, news accounts and prior DOJ materials indicate the federal case file is vast, with more than 300 gigabytes of data gathered across investigations — a scope cited in reporting on evidence logs and committee releases. (washingtonpost.com)
