H.R. 7814 (Introduced in House) — Ensuring Prosecutorial Scrutiny, Transparency, and Equal Impartiality Nationwide Act

Section 1 Short title

This Act may be cited as the “Ensuring Prosecutorial Scrutiny, Transparency, and Equal Impartiality Nationwide Act” or the “EPSTEIN Act”.

Sec. 2 Establishment of commission

There is established in the legislative branch a commission to be known as the Epstein Transparency and Accountability Commission (in this Act referred to as the “Commission”) to examine and investigate all materials in the possession, custody, or control of the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and United States Attorneys’ Offices, that are required to be preserved, disclosed, or maintained under Public Law 119–38.

Sec. 3 Composition of commission

(a)

Membership—

(1)

In general— The Commission shall be composed of 8 members, of whom—

(A)

2 shall be appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, in consultation with the appropriate committees of jurisdictions;

(B)

2 shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, in consultation with the appropriate committees of jurisdictions;

(C)

2 shall be appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, in consultation with the appropriate committees of jurisdictions; and

(D)

2 shall be appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, in consultation with the appropriate committees of jurisdictions.

(2)

Initial appointments— Initial appointments to the Commission shall be made not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(3)

Vacancy— A vacancy on the Commission shall be filled in the same manner as the initial appointment.

(b)

Qualifications; limitations—

(1)

Qualifications— It is the sense of the Congress that individuals appointed to the Commission should be prominent United States citizens with national recognition and significant depth of experience in fields related to human trafficking, forced labor, sexual exploitation, and coercion.

(2)

Limitation— No person who is a Member of Congress (including a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Congress) or an officer, official, or employee of the Department of Justice may serve as a member of the Commission or provide consultation services to the Commission.

(c)

Chairperson; vice-Chairperson—

(1)

In general— At the initial meeting of the Commission, the Commission shall select a Chairperson and a Vice-Chairperson from among its members.

(2)

Political party affiliation— The Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Commission may not be from the same political party.

(d)

Consultant services— The Commission may procure the services of experts and consultants in accordance with section 3109 of title 5, United States Code, and shall allow the referral of credible evidence of crimes to those contracted, who may be but are not limited to—

(1)

experts on sex and labor trafficking;

(2)

State and Federal law enforcement;

(3)

the chief legal officer of a State; and

(4)

former Federal law enforcement.

Sec. 4 Functions of the Commission

(a)

In general— The Commission shall—

(1)

conduct an independent, impartial, and comprehensive investigation into any criminal violations committed by Jeffrey Epstein and any accomplices or associated individuals;

(2)

ensure rigorous, independent investigation and oversight regarding the review and analysis of all materials commonly referred to as the “Epstein files”;

(3)

consult with and refer matters to appropriate legal, prosecutorial, and subject-matter experts to determine recommended next steps for any violations identified;

(4)

review all unredacted information and data relating to Jeffrey Epstein’s actions, activities, communications, and interactions with others, to the fullest extent permitted by law;

(5)

promote and ensure public transparency in the Department of Justice’s enforcement of Federal human trafficking laws, consistent with protecting victims and ongoing investigations;

(6)

exercise any additional oversight authority deemed necessary by the Commission, including authority carried out directly or through contracted experts; and

(7)

issue quarterly reports to Congress detailing investigative progress, findings, recommendations, and any identified compliance or enforcement concerns.

(b)

Explicit referral authority— The Commission has the authority to refer matters to relevant entities recommending prosecution under chapter 77 of title 18, United States Code, and to a State attorney general recommending prosecution under relevant State law upon findings indicating potential criminal conduct and may hold public hearings about potential violations of applicable requirements.

(c)

Report on results of referral— An entity that receives a referral under subsection (b) shall submit to Congress a report on each prosecution, conviction, resolution, or other disposition that results from a referral made.

(d)

Authority To request and receive information from Federal agencies—

(1)

In general— The Commission may secure directly from any Federal agency such information, relevant to its functions, as may be necessary to enable the Commission to carry out this section.

(2)

Request for information— Upon request of the Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson of the Commission, the head of a Federal agency shall furnish such information to the Commission in a publicly available, searchable and downloadable format with all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials.

(e)

Power to subpoena— Subpoenas may be issued under the signature of both the Chairperson and the Vice-Chairperson of the Commission or by the affirmative vote of 5 members of the Commission and may be served by any person designated by such co-chairs.

(f)

Enforcement—

(1)

In general— In the case of contumacy or failure to obey a subpoena issued under this section, the United States district court for the judicial district in which the subpoenaed person resides, is served, or may be found, or where the subpoena is returnable, may issue an order requiring such person to appear at any designated place to testify or to produce documentary or other evidence. Any failure to obey the order of the court may be punished by the court as a contempt of that court.

(2)

Additional enforcement— If any witness fails to comply with any subpoena issued under this section or to testify when summoned under authority of this section, the Commission may, by majority vote, certify a statement of fact constituting such failure to the appropriate United States attorney, who may bring the matter before the grand jury for its action, under the same statutory authority and procedures as if the United States attorney had received a certification under sections 102 through 104 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 192 through 194).

Sec. 5 Final classification and public release report

(a)

In general— The Commission shall, not later than 18 months after the date of the establishment of the Commission, submit to Congress a report on the results of the investigation conducted under section 4(a) and such report shall—

(1)

be submitted in unclassified form, to the greatest extent possible, with a classified annex only if necessary;

(2)

in the case of the unclassified portion of the report, be posted on a public website established and maintained by the Commission and such other Federal agencies as may be appropriate; and

(3)

include—

(A)

updates on cases pending on perpetrators of human trafficking crimes;

(B)

a description of Federal efforts to estimate the prevalence of human trafficking at the national and regional levels in regard to the Epstein investigation;

(C)

an examination of the effectiveness of current policies and procedures to address the needs of victims of trafficking;

(D)

an analysis of demographic characteristics of victims of trafficking in different regions of the United States; and

(E)

recommendations for how to address the unique vulnerabilities of different victims.

(b)

Permitted withholdings— With respect to the report submitted under subsection (a), the Commission may withhold or redact the segregable portions of records that—

(1)

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;

(2)

depict or contain child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) as defined under section 2256 of title 18, United States Code, and prohibited under sections 2252 and 2252A of such title; or

(3)

depict or contain images of death, physical abuse, or injury of any person.

Sec. 6 Authorization of appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for the Commission to carry out its duties under this Act.

Ensuring Prosecutorial Scrutiny, Transparency, and Equal Impartiality Nationwide Act