Attorney General Nessel and Coalition of Attorneys General Urge Congress to Pass Epstein Files Transparency Act II

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has joined a coalition of attorneys general in sending a letter to congressional leadership (PDF) urging swift passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act II (EFTA II), legislation that would give state attorneys general and survivors the power to enforce the transparency Congress has already demanded.

The letter, addressed to Speaker Mike Johnson, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, supports H.R. 9694 and its Senate companion, S. 5005.

Congress passed the original Epstein Files Transparency Act (EFTA I), which took effect November 19, 2025 (Public Law 119-38), to give survivors and the public access to the full investigative record of Jeffrey Epstein's crimes. The law required the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to make the files publicly available by December 19, 2025. Nearly a year later, the Department has not met that obligation. In Phang v. Blanche, a federal court in the District of Columbia noted that the Attorney General conceded he is in violation of the Act.

“Survivors still wait for the transparency Congress promised as millions of Epstein documents are being withheld,” said Attorney General Nessel. “These records may be critical to uncovering wrongdoing and holding people accountable under state law. I’m proud to join my fellow attorneys general in this effort to urge Congress to give states the legal tools to obtain the records the Justice Department is required to release.”

According to the letter, DOJ released only a limited portion of the files on the December 19, 2025, deadline. Later disclosures also fell short. Millions of documents remain withheld, often on the claim of legal privilege. At the same time, a Wall Street Journal review found that the personal information of at least 43 victims was exposed in the files that were released, despite the protections written into EFTA I.

In the letter, the attorneys general emphasize that the shortfall affects states directly. State law enforcement and prosecutors need full access to unredacted investigative records, including relevant FBI 302 reports, to investigate and pursue matters within their jurisdictions. Survivors, meanwhile, continue to be denied closure and control over their own records.

What EFTA II would do

• Create an expedited right of action. State attorneys general, authorized state officials, victims, and members of Congress to have explicit standing to sue the U.S. Attorney General in federal court for unlawfully withholding, delaying, or heavily redacting Epstein-related records.
• Protect survivor access. Victims would be guaranteed the right to access unredacted records about themselves and the harms they suffered.
• Eliminate evasions. DOJ would be barred from invoking common law privileges, such as the deliberative process privilege, to avoid the disclosure requirements Congress enacted.
• Enforce accountability. Federal officials who knowingly conceal, destroy, or improperly withhold mandated files would be subject to existing federal penalties.

The letter also notes that the pursuit of justice and public accountability transcends partisanship and urges Congress to act so that no federal agency places itself above the law.

Joining Attorney General Nessel in the letter are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Virginia.

A copy of the letter is available here (PDF).

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