Epstein presents bill that includes exceptions that could affect what is published and when

Even though Congress overwhelmingly passed a bill requiring the Justice Department to release its files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and even if President Donald Trump signs it into law, it is unclear when, or even if, the public will see those files, or how complete they might be.

Asked Wednesday how she would respond to Congress, Attorney General Pam Bondi said, “We have turned over more than 33,000 Epstein documents to Congress and will continue to follow the law and have maximum transparency.” He spoke at an unrelated news conference alongside FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.

He bill includes several exceptions to a full disclosure that could complicate or delay the disclosure.

Moment

The measure says the Justice Department has up to 30 days from its signing to make “available to the public 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 the United States Attorneys’ Offices, that relate to Jeffrey Epstein, including all investigations, prosecutions or custody matters.”

If Trump signs the bill on Wednesday, the department would potentially have until Dec. 19 to release information from the Epstein investigation.

Possible redactions, other information withheld

The Justice Department “may withhold or redact” the identities and “personal and medical records” of Epstein’s victims, the bill states.

“We will continue to follow the law while protecting victims,” ​​Bondi repeated, when pressed by reporters.

“Were We are going to protect victims, and the law as written allows us to do so. You know, the law has sculpt measures to protect the victims and protect the information surrounding the victims, which is what we do, not only in this case, but in all cases,” Blanche added.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he told the president that the bill does not do enough to protect victims from being identified.

The Justice Department can also withhold material that “constitutes a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” or “depicts or contains child sexual abuse,” according to the bill.

However, the bill contains language stating that “no record shall be withheld, delayed, or redacted for reasons of embarrassment, harm to reputation, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

‘Active’ investigations

The measure also states that the Attorney General may withhold or redact information that “would jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution, as long as such withholding is temporary and specific.”

For any material it decides to withhold or redact, the Department of Justice must, within 15 days of its release, describe the justifications for doing so.

The bill’s exception regarding an “active investigation” could include the new investigation into any connections top Democrats had to Epstein that Trump ordered Bondi to conduct last Friday.

When asked by ABC News Supreme Court correspondent Pierre Thomas about his July statement that a review of documents and evidence at the time did not suggest that any additional third party investigation was justified, Bondi responded that there is “new information, additional information.”

“We will continue to follow the law to investigate any leads. If there are any victims, we encourage all victims to come forward,” he said, without elaborating, citing a pending investigation in the Southern District of New York.

When he reversed his position of opposing Congress’ vote on the release of the files on Sunday, Trump’s post notably included qualifying language, that the House “can have all that is legally due to it.”

-ABC News’ Alexander Mallin, Allison Pecorin, Lauren Peller and John Parkinson contributed to this report.