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Bills/119th Congress · House

H.Res. 581

Introduced

Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 185) to advance responsible policies.

Sponsor
RThomas Massie· Kentucky
Introduced
July 15, 2025
Policy area
Congress
Latest action
Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 879, H. Res. 581 is laid on the table.November 19, 2025
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 581 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 581

Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 185) to advance 
responsible policies.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

July 15, 2025

Mr. Massie (for himself and Mr. Khanna) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Rules

_______________________________________________________________________

RESOLUTION

Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 185) to advance 
responsible policies.

Resolved, That immediately upon adoption of this resolution, the 
House shall proceed to the consideration in the House of the bill (H.R. 
185) to advance responsible policies. All points of order against 
consideration of the bill are waived. The amendment in the nature of a 
substitute specified in section 4 of this resolution shall be 
considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as 
read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, 
are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the 
bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final 
passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate 
equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member 
of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees; and 
(2) one motion to recommit.
Sec. 2. Clause 1(c) of rule XIX and clause 8 of rule XX shall not 
apply to the consideration of H.R. 185.
Sec. 3. The Clerk shall transmit to the Senate a message that the 
House has passed H.R. 185 no later than one week after passage.
Sec. 4. The amendment in the nature of a substitute referred to in 
the first section of this resolution is as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

``SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

``This Act may be cited as the `Epstein Files Transparency Act'.

``SEC. 2. RELEASE OF DOCUMENTS RELATING TO JEFFREY EPSTEIN.

``(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall, subject to 
subsection (b), make publicly available in a searchable and 
downloadable format all unclassified records, documents, 
communications, and investigative materials in the possession of the 
Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
and United States Attorneys' Offices, that relate to:
``(1) Jeffrey Epstein including all investigations, 
prosecutions, or custodial matters.
``(2) Ghislaine Maxwell.
``(3) Flight logs or travel records, including but not 
limited to manifests, itineraries, pilot records, and customs 
or immigration documentation, for any aircraft, vessel, or 
vehicle owned, operated, or used by Jeffrey Epstein or any 
related entity.
``(4) Individuals, including government officials, named or 
referenced in connection with Epstein's criminal activities, 
civil settlements, immunity or plea agreements, or 
investigatory proceedings.
``(5) Entities (corporate, nonprofit, academic, or 
governmental) with known or alleged ties to Epstein's 
trafficking or financial networks.
``(6) Any immunity deals, non-prosecution agreements, plea 
bargains, or sealed settlements involving Epstein or his 
associates.
``(7) Internal DOJ communications, including emails, memos, 
meeting notes, concerning decisions to charge, not charge, 
investigate, or decline to investigate Epstein or his 
associates.
``(8) All communications, memoranda, directives, logs, or 
metadata concerning the destruction, deletion, alteration, 
misplacement, or concealment of documents, recordings, or 
electronic data related to Epstein, his associates, his 
detention and death, or any investigative files.
``(9) Documentation of Epstein's detention or death, 
including incident reports, witness interviews, medical 
examiner files, autopsy reports, and written records detailing 
the circumstances and cause of death.
``(b) Prohibited Grounds for Withholding.--No record shall be 
withheld, delayed, or redacted on the basis of any of the following:
``(1) Embarrassment, reputational harm, or political 
sensitivity, including to any government official, public 
figure, or foreign dignitary.
``(c) Permitted Withholdings.--
``(1) The Attorney General may withhold or redact the 
segregable portions of records that--
``(A) contain personally identifiable information 
of victims or victims' personal and medical files and 
similar files the disclosure of which would constitute 
a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
``(B) depicts or contains child sexual abuse 
materials (CSAM) as defined under 18 U.S.C. 2256 and 
prohibited under 18 U.S.C. 2252-2252A;
``(C) would jeopardize an active federal 
investigation or ongoing prosecution, provided that 
such withholding is narrowly tailored and temporary;
``(D) depicts or contains images of death, physical 
abuse, or injury of any person; or
``(E) contain information specifically authorized 
under criteria established by an Executive order to be 
kept secret in the interest of national defense or 
foreign policy and are in fact properly classified 
pursuant to such Executive order.
``(2) All redactions must be accompanied by a written 
justification published in the Federal Register and submitted 
to Congress.
``(3) To the extent that any covered information would 
otherwise be redacted or withheld as classified information 
under this section, the Attorney General shall declassify that 
classified information to the maximum extent possible.
``(A). If the Attorney General makes a 
determination that covered information may not be 
declassified and made available in a manner that 
protects the national security of the United States, 
including methods or sources related to national 
security, the Attorney General shall release an 
unclassified summary for each of the redacted or 
withheld classified information.
``(4) All decisions to classify any covered information 
after July 1, 2025 shall be published in the Federal Register 
and submitted to Congress, including the date of 
classification, the identity of the classifying authority, and 
an unclassified summary of the justification.

``SEC. 3. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

``Within 15 days of completion of the release required under 
Section 2, the Attorney General shall submit to the House and Senate 
Committees on the Judiciary a report listing:
``(1) All categories of records released and withheld.
``(2) A summary of redactions made, including legal basis.
``(3) A list of all government officials and politically 
exposed persons named or referenced in the released materials, 
with no redactions permitted under subsection (b)(1).''.
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