House Moves Toward Vote on Epstein Files Act II After 218 Signatures

Rep. John Garamendi of California signed the discharge petition on November 11, according to the House Clerk, becoming the 218th member to support bringing the legislation to the floor.

The petition, filed on August 31 by Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, needed a majority of the House to force consideration of the Epstein Files Transparency Act II. Rep. Adam Smith of Washington had signed a day earlier as the 217th member, after the count had sat at 216 since mid-September.

Only four Republicans joined: Massie, Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman of South Carolina, and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania. The rest of the signatures came from Democrats. Massie is the bill’s sponsor; Reps. Ro Khanna of California and Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico are House co-leads.

How the Petition Reached 218

Members may sign only while the House is in session. The chamber left for the pre-election recess two signatures short, then returned this week. The Clerk’s official list records Garamendi’s signature on November 11.

Massie had said after the midterms that the petition would reach 218 once the House came back, which he argued would “guarantee a vote.” POLITICO and congressional reporter Jamie Dupree confirmed the threshold was met Wednesday.

What the Second Bill Would Change

The first Epstein Files Transparency Act, signed on November 19, 2025, as Public Law 119-38, required the Justice Department to disclose Epstein-related records. A federal judge later ordered the department to unredact files.

The follow-up bill, H.R. 9694, would add enforcement tools the first law did not provide. It would let state attorneys general, members of Congress, and victims sue the attorney general over alleged unlawful withholding, redaction, delay, or concealment of records, and let victims obtain unredacted files about themselves.

Massie has said the department is “unlawfully” withholding more than 3 million files and has kept heavy redactions on those it has released. Khanna has accused the department of violating the 2025 law. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has said the Justice Department complied with that statute.

A Vote Still Requires a Waiting Period

Reaching 218 signatures does not put the bill on the floor the same day. Under House rules, the motion must sit on the Discharge Calendar for seven legislative days. The House would then vote on discharging the Rules Committee, on adopting the procedural resolution, and only then on the bill itself.

That timetable points to a floor vote in the coming weeks, not immediately. Incoming House Oversight leaders have already pledged further investigations related to the files, and Democrats had flagged the records as a priority during the midterm campaign.