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By Dan Gooding and Gabe Whisnant
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The Justice Department said a House Oversight Committee subpoena seeking Attorney General Pam Bondi’s testimony over the release of Jeffrey Epstein files is "unnecessary," arguing that lawmakers have already been given access to unredacted materials and opportunities for briefings.
House Oversight Chair James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, on Tuesday issued a subpoena requiring Bondi to appear for a deposition on April 14 as part of the committee’s investigation into the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.
A DOJ spokesperson said members of Congress have been invited to review the files at the department and that Bondi has remained available to speak directly with lawmakers about compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, adding that officials had offered to brief the committee again this week.
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“This subpoena is completely unnecessary. Lawmakers have been invited to view the unredacted files for themselves at the Department of Justice, and the Attorney General has always made herself available to speak directly with members of Congress," a DOJ spokesperson told Newsweek.
"She continues to have calls and meetings with members of Congress on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which is why the Department offered to brief the committee tomorrow. As always, we look forward to continuing to provide policymakers with the facts.”
Why Was Pam Bondi Subpoenaed?
Bondi has come under heavy criticism over her department's handling of the release of the Epstein files.
President Donald Trump ran for reelection on a promise of greater transparency over the federal government's investigations into Epstein and the alleged associates linked to his long-running sex trafficking operation. Last summer, Bondi's DOJ issued a statement declaring that no further files would be released following internal investigations, sparking outrage among Trump's supporters and lawmakers who felt a promise had been broken.
Democrats and a select few Republicans in Congress led efforts to force the DOJ and FBI to release the Epstein files, culminating in the Epstein Files Transparency Act late last year. That legislation gave the DOJ a December 19 deadline to release all relevant documents, which was largely missed.
Millions of documents were then released by the DOJ, but lawmakers from both parties say vital records, including video, audio, logs, and entire troves of material made public earlier, remain missing or have been quietly pulled back from public view.
Bondi’s critics argue the department ignored statutory deadlines, withheld “millions more” pages, and applied redactions that undermine the law’s intent—claims that helped fuel bipartisan support for forcing the attorney general to appear.
On March 4, five Republican members of the House Oversight Committee voted to subpoena Bondi: Tim Burchett, Lauren Boebert, Michael Cloud, Nancy Mace, and Scott Perry.
"There are millions more documents out there. We want to know why the DOJ is more focused on shielding the powerful than delivering justice," Mace, a South Carolina Representative, posted on X that day. "The American people deserve answers, victims deserve justice. HOLD. THE. LINE."
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When Will Pam Bondi Testify?
Comer told Bondi on Tuesday that she was expected to appear before the House Oversight Committee on April 14.
"The Committee has questions regarding the Department of Justice’s handling of the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and his associates and its compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act," Comer wrote to Bondi. "As Attorney General, you are directly responsible for overseeing the Department’s collection, review, and determinations regarding the release of files pursuant to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and the Committee therefore believes that you possess valuable insight into these efforts."
The committee chair said that the results of Bondi's hearing may inform "legislative solutions" to improve how the federal government combats sex trafficking and other abuses.
In its announcement, the committee also said that Bondi and her deputy, Todd Blanche, would brief the Oversight Committee on Wednesday, but that this would be private.
Update 3/17/26, 3:16 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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