Full Committee Business Meeting

The committee will please come to order. A quorum is present. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare a recess at any time. Pursuant to committee rule 5b and house rule 11 clause 2, the chair may postpone further proceedings today on the question of approving any measure or matter adopting an amendment on which a recorded vote or the yays and nays are ordered. Now pursuant to notice, I call up a report containing a resolution recommending that the house of representatives find Leon D. Black in contempt of congress for refusal to comply with duly issued subpoenas issued by the committee. The clerk will report the report which has been distributed in advance. A report containing a house resolution recommending that the house of representatives find Leon D. Black in contempt of congress for refusal to comply with duly issued subpoenas issued by the committee on oversight and government reform. I ask unanimous consent that the report be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment the nature of a substitute. The clerk will please report the amendment. An amendment in the nature of a substitute offered to the contempt report is offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky. Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered an original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize myself for five minutes for a statement on the report. Today the house of representatives committee on oversight and government reform meets to advance a resolution recommending that the house find Leon D. Black in contempt of congress for refusing to comply with duly issued subpoenas. Our investigation, our investigation examining how federal government for decades failed survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell's crimes and how Mr. Epstein sought to curry favor and exercise influence to avoid scrutiny. I subpoenaed Leon Black for testimony and documents critical to our investigation but he has refused to comply. Leon Black is legally required to appear for a deposition before the oversight committee and required to turn over all non-disclosure agreements to which he was a party. The committee also asked for all NDAs and confidentiality agreements that Epstein and Maxwell were involved or referenced in. He defied congress and refused to do either. Instead Mr. Black is hiding behind litigation to delay having to provide answers to the American people. No one is above the law. Mr. Black will be treated the same as anyone else in this investigation and his actions have consequences. A little over two months ago Mr. Black appeared before the committee for a transcribed interview but only an hour into the interview he began refusing to answer questions. So we issued two subpoenas to him. One for a deposition and one to produce his confidentiality agreements. Mr. Black did not appear for a scheduled deposition on September 3rd 2026 and only produced one NDA to the committee despite his counsel indicating there were many more. Subpoenas are not suggestions. They carry the force of law and require full compliance. Mr. Black's testimony is crucial to our investigation because he maintained a close personal relationship with Epstein for years during the time when Epstein was engaged in sex trafficking. Mr. Black and Epstein also had a significant financial relationship. He funded Epstein's lavish lifestyle for years enabling Epstein to continue his horrific crimes. His testimony about Epstein, Maxwell and their crimes is invaluable. The committee wants to ensure that NDAs or other confidentiality agreements cannot be used to cover up criminal activities. We made it clear to Mr. Black and his attorneys that if he did not comply then the committee would initiate contempt proceedings. We have no choice to hold him in contempt. I encourage my colleagues to support this measure. I now yield to Ranking Member Garcia for his opening statement. Thank you Chairman Comer and we are really here today on a really bipartisan basis because Leon Black is refusing to cooperate with our investigation as an oversight committee on the investigation of course of Jeffrey Epstein. Now we believe that Leon Black is at the heart of the Epstein network. This is a private equity billionaire worth roughly 13 billion dollars. We need to know why Jeffrey Epstein got over 180 million dollars from Mr. Black. We know this money enabled Epstein's activities for years and we need to know how and if it led to the abuse of women and girls. We need to know about Leon Black and Jeffrey Epstein's financial dealings. We need to know about the role of the big banks and we need to for us as a committee focus on how we in the future combat money laundering and sex trafficking. This investigation is important and can lead to so much for the protection of women and girls across this country. We also need to know about the involvement of other powerful and wealthy men and how law enforcement failed to protect survivors. We need to know about Mr. Black's knowledge of Epstein's inner circle and activities. We need to know why he used non-disclosure agreements to silence women connected to Jeffrey Epstein. But Leon Black is refusing to provide this information to Congress. Now this committee has tried to work with him to get answers but he's had no interest in cooperating and I do want to thank Chairman Comer for his efforts. We support and did support his efforts on these subpoenas and they're absolutely the right thing to do to get to the truth. We should not allow Leon Black to defy congressional subpoenas. Our investigation is about fighting for the survivors of Epstein's abuse and we're going to develop reforms and legal changes to ensure the system that allowed Jeffrey Epstein and his billionaire friends to continue their activities for years comes to an end. Now Leon Black walked out of an interview with our committee. He refused to turn over documents. He refused to show up and testify for the deposition. That's two congressional subpoenas now that he's defied. It's unacceptable to this committee and unfortunately billionaires like Leon Black believe that they are above the law. Some of them certainly do. He believes that he's above this committee's oversight authority. He believes he is too powerful for Congress or the American people to touch but we're going to stand up and remind Leon Black and the American people that subpoenas are not suggestions. Finally I want to note that Leon Black certainly is not the only witness who has refused to answer our questions. For example of course Alan Dershowitz has repeatedly said he would appear before this committee to talk about Jeffrey Epstein but when given the opportunity he's also backed out twice. Now Dershowitz may have been the president's lawyer but he's also not above the law in answering this committee's questions. Alan Dershowitz should come forward and tell the American people and our committee what he knows and certainly today this committee should be focused on Leon Black and moving this motion that's in front of us forward to the full house. I thank Chairman Comer for his bipartisanship today and I yield back. Gentlemen yields back. Does any other member wish to be heard? Seeing none the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute to the report recommending the House of Representatives refer Leon D. Black for contempt of Congress. All those in favor signify by saying aye. All those opposed signify by saying no. In the opinion of the chair the ayes have it and the amendment in the nature of substitute to the report is agreed to. The question is now on favorably reporting the House of Representatives refer Leon Black for contempt of Congress. The clerk will now call the roll on the report. Mr. Jordan. Mr. Turner. Mr. Turner votes aye. Mr. Gosar. Ms. Fox. Mr. Grothman. Mr. Grothman votes aye. Mr. Cloud. Mr. Palmer. Mr. Higgins. Mr. Sessions. Mr. Sessions votes aye. Mr. Biggs. Mr. Biggs votes aye. Ms. Mace. Ms. Mace votes aye. Mr. Falun. Mr. Donalds. Mr. Perry. Mr. Timmons. Mr. Timmons votes aye. Mr. Burchett. Ms. Boebert. Ms. Boebert votes aye. Ms. Luna. Mr. Langworthy. Mr. Burleson. Mr. Burleson votes aye. Mr. Crane. Mr. Crane votes aye. Mr. Jack. Mr. Jack votes aye. Mr. McGuire. Mr. McGuire votes aye. Mr. Gill. Mr. Gill votes aye. Mr. McCormick. Mr. McCormick votes aye. Mr. Garcia. Aye. Mr. Garcia votes aye. Ms. Norton. Aye. Ms. Norton votes aye. Mr. Lynch. Mr. Lynch votes aye. Mr. Krishnamoorthi. Aye. Mr. Krishnamoorthi votes aye. Mr. Khanna. Mr. Khanna votes aye. Mr. Mfume. Aye. Mr. Mfume votes aye. Ms. Brown. Aye. Ms. Brown votes aye. Ms. Stansbury. Aye. Ms. Stansbury votes aye. Mr. Frost. Aye. Mr. Frost votes aye. Mr. Kassar. Mr. Kassar votes aye. Ms. Crockett. Ms. Crockett votes aye. Ms. Randall. Ms. Randall votes aye. Mr. Subramaniam. Mr. Subramaniam votes aye. Ms. Ansari. Aye. Ms. Ansari votes aye. Mr. Bell. Aye. Mr. Bell votes aye. Ms. Simon. Aye. Ms. Simon votes aye. Mr. Min. Mr. Min votes aye. Mr. Walkinshaw. Mr. Walkinshaw votes aye. Mr. Menefee. Aye. Mr. Menefee votes aye. Ms. Presley. Ms. Presley votes aye. Ms. Tlaib. Aye. Ms. Tlaib votes aye. Mr. Chairman. I vote aye. How has Ms. Luna been recorded? Mr. Chairman votes aye. Ms. Luna is not recorded. I'd like to record my vote as aye. Ms. Luna votes aye. And Madam Clerk, we have one in the hallway walking in right now. Okay. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Jordan's on his way. Okay, we have one more. How has Mr. Cloud been recorded? Mr. Cloud is not recorded. Mr. Cloud votes aye. How has Mr. Jordan been recorded? Mr. Jordan is not yet recorded. Yes. Mr. Jordan votes yes. Mr. Falun is not yet recorded. Mr. Falun votes aye. Mr. Perry has not yet been recorded. Mr. Perry votes aye. Go ahead. How has Mr. Palmer been recorded? Mr. Palmer has not yet been recorded. Mr. Palmer votes aye. Now, have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will now report the vote total. Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 41, the nays are zero. Pursuant to this vote, let me say the ayes have it and let the record know that it was a unanimous vote. Pursuant to this vote, the committee hereby favorably reports and adopts this report recommending that the House of Representatives find Leon D. Black in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with subpoenas duly issued by this committee. We will move the report to the full House. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. Pursuant to House Rule 11, Clause 2, committee members shall have the right to file with the clerk of the committee supplemental additional minority and dissenting views within two days. Without objection, so ordered. Additionally, the staff is authorized to make necessary technical and conforming changes to the report ordered reported today subject to the approval of the minority. Without objection, so ordered. If no further business before the committee, without objection, the committee stands adjourned.