WASHINGTON — The House Oversight Committee voted unanimously Tuesday to recommend that billionaire investor Leon Black be held in contempt of Congress, escalating a dispute over his cooperation with the panel’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. The 41-0 vote followed Black’s refusal to fully comply with two subpoenas, his decision not to appear for a scheduled transcribed interview on Sept. 3 and a lawsuit challenging the committee’s authority. The contempt resolution must now be considered by the full House, which also could vote to refer the matter to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia for possible prosecution. “Subpoenas are not suggestions,” committee Chair James Comer, a Kentucky Republican, said after the vote. He said Black’s repeated refusals left the panel with “no choice” but to pursue contempt proceedings. The committee is examining Black’s personal and financial relationship with Epstein, the convicted sex trafficker who died in 2019. Black paid Epstein $158 million not long after Epstein became a registered sex offender, according to the committee’s investigation. Black appeared before the panel in May for a transcribed interview but declined to answer extensively about nondisclosure agreements involving women connected to Epstein. The committee subsequently demanded that he provide documents related to those agreements. According to the panel, Black refused to turn over all of the requested documents and then skipped the September appearance, opting instead to sue the committee. His lawyers, Susan Estrich and Aaron Cutler, urged lawmakers to postpone the contempt vote, portraying the dispute as politically motivated and accusing Comer and the committee’s ranking Democrat, Rep. Robert Garcia of California, of misconduct and defamatory statements. “This entire charade is about politics and ambition,” the lawyers said in a statement before the vote. A contempt resolution approved by the House can be referred to the Justice Department, which would decide whether to pursue criminal charges. The House is scheduled to leave Washington at the end of the week for a recess expected to last until after the November midterm elections, putting pressure on Republican leaders to decide quickly whether to schedule a floor vote. Comer said the timing was ultimately up to House Republican leadership. A spokesperson for Speaker Mike Johnson did not immediately comment. The committee’s action comes as lawmakers face renewed pressure to account for institutions and influential figures connected to Epstein. A House vote would not itself establish criminal liability for Black, but it would mark a significant escalation in Congress’ effort to compel testimony and records in the investigation.