Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) voted for the bipartisan Epstein Files Transparency Act, H.Res. 581, to force the Trump administration to release all files related to the sex-trafficking investigation into Jeffrey Epstein at the Department of Justice.

“The survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and the American people deserve the truth, and today the House took an important step toward providing it,” said Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher.  “Until days ago, when passage of this legislation became all but guaranteed, President Trump and his allies in Congress did everything in their power to prevent this vote from happening, from sending the House home early in July to delaying the swearing in of Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva—the final member needed to force this vote—for 50 days.

“President Trump has—and has had—the power to release the Epstein files without congressional approval,” continued Congresswoman Fletcher.  “But with an overwhelming desire from the American people to release the files, both Democrats and Republicans in Congress have taken matters into their own hands and advanced this bill to release the files.  I will not stop working to provide transparency, accountability, and justice for the survivors.  Finding justice for the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein is essential for their healing and also for restoring public trust in institutions that failed to protect them and preventing such abuses from happening again.”

In September, Congresswoman Fletcher signed a discharge petition to force a vote on H.Res. 581 after Speaker Mike Johnson refused to allow a vote on the bill.  A discharge petition is a legislative tool in the U.S. House of Representatives that allows a majority of members—or 218 members—to force a bill to the floor for a vote by the full chamber, even if the Speaker of the House opposes it.  Last week, the petition received enough signatures to force a vote in the House on H.Res. 581.  Now, the bill heads to the Senate where Majority Leader Thune will determine if it will receive a vote.