Jim Costa
Representative for California · Democratic · United States
“They have done it twice, once in the big, not so beautiful bill, in my view, and they have done it a second time in this ag appropriations that was passed last month. Again, the Agriculture appropriations bill made this cut, as I said, 5.6 percent, or another $6 billion below last year's enacted measure.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“We are talking about mothers stretching bags of groceries to the last of the week and oftentimes making difficult choices between food or medicine for their children. We are also talking about veterans who have served this country and now have difficulty putting food on the table.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“It makes it harder because the USDA is part of a safety net for American agriculture. For hungry families, it is even crueler. It takes food off the table.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Madam Speaker, as our Nation continues to commemorate our 250th anniversary, we are reminded that the ideals on which America was founded are as critical today as they were then: a nation built on a promise that every person has dignity and that no one should be left behind--the land of opportunity.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Madam Speaker, on April 24, throughout the country and throughout the world, Armenians recognized the Armenian genocide that took place from 1915 to 1923 at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.”
House of Representatives28 April 2025Source ↗
“Speaker, I rise to honor the incredible life of another American, Guadalupe Castillo, a true American hero from my hometown of Fresno, California, from the San Joaquin Valley. At just 18, he entered the United States Army to do his duty during World War II.”
House of Representatives28 April 2025Source ↗
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“The farm bill on the Senate side gives us another chance, and I ask that we reconsider the SNAP payments on that farm bill in September. Fraud is a crime, but hunger is not. Let us honor the values of this anniversary. ____________________”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“They have done it twice, once in the big, not so beautiful bill, in my view, and they have done it a second time in this ag appropriations that was passed last month. Again, the Agriculture appropriations bill made this cut, as I said, 5.6 percent, or another $6 billion below last year's enacted measure. On top of that, they are cutting fruit and vegetable benefits from the Women, Infants, and Children's program--fruits and vegetables, healthy aspects of our diet. It makes no sense why we are making it harder for families in underserved communities to put fresh, healthy food on the table. I voted ``no'' on that bill. My district in the San Joaquin Valley in California has some of the most vital, richest agricultural production anywhere in the country or the world, yet we have a significant amount of people who are food insecure.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“We are talking about mothers stretching bags of groceries to the last of the week and oftentimes making difficult choices between food or medicine for their children. We are also talking about veterans who have served this country and now have difficulty putting food on the table. We are talking about people with disabilities who have nowhere else to turn. We are talking about our neighbors. They are Americans living during the celebration of this 250th year of this Republic. A drop in enrollment has nothing to do with fraud or a stronger economy. It has to do with people losing their benefits that they are entitled to. Yet, many of my Republican colleagues cut SNAP and nutrition assistance twice.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“It makes it harder because the USDA is part of a safety net for American agriculture. For hungry families, it is even crueler. It takes food off the table. I ask what it says about us, in this 250th anniversary that is intended to commemorate the greatness of our country, that we are stripping food from the most vulnerable Americans and calling it a positive trend. Give me a break. Madam Speaker, 46 percent of Americans being cut from SNAP are children--children, not criminals, not fraudsters. They are children. Over 700,000 kids have already lost their food benefits, and that is only in the 12 States currently reporting the child-level data. The real number, I think, is far worse.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Madam Speaker, as our Nation continues to commemorate our 250th anniversary, we are reminded that the ideals on which America was founded are as critical today as they were then: a nation built on a promise that every person has dignity and that no one should be left behind--the land of opportunity.”
House of Representatives14 July 2026Source ↗
“Madam Speaker, on April 24, throughout the country and throughout the world, Armenians recognized the Armenian genocide that took place from 1915 to 1923 at the hands of the Ottoman Empire. I stand here today to confront it, empowered by facts, and determined that we never, ever forget the Armenian genocide, the first genocide that took place in the 20th century. Obviously, the Holocaust was to follow later on. It is a dark history, but we should never, ever forget our history. Azerbaijan's President Aliyev, much like Putin of Russia, has led an ethnic cleansing and weaponized starvation against Armenians still today, notwithstanding the Minsk agreements that he has violated. Over 120,000 Armenians in the last 2 years have been driven out of their homeland of Nagorno-Karabakh, otherwise known as Artsakh.”
House of Representatives28 April 2025Source ↗
“Speaker, I rise to honor the incredible life of another American, Guadalupe Castillo, a true American hero from my hometown of Fresno, California, from the San Joaquin Valley. At just 18, he entered the United States Army to do his duty during World War II. He faced some of the toughest and fiercest battles that our Nation was engaged in at that time: the Battle of the Bulge, D-day at Omaha Beach, and the liberation of France from the tyranny of the Nazis. Mr. Castillo's courage and sacrifice helped shape the course of the history of our Nation in the 20th century, but his service didn't just end there. After World War II, he came home and devoted 20 years to helping fellow veterans there with the Veterans Administration at the veterans hospital in Fresno, inspiring his son to follow in his footsteps.”
House of Representatives28 April 2025Source ↗
“At just 28 years of age, Marcelino served with distinction as a combat engineer in the 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division. Marcelino's commitment took him across the world with distinction as a combat engineer and as a part of a Marine Rotational Force all the way to Darwin, Australia. His service was marked by distinction, earning him the National Defense Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. We, the folks in the San Joaquin Valley, mourn his tragic loss. Our hearts are with his family, his friends, and his fellow marines. His courage and his service will never be forgotten. Semper Fi, and God bless. Honoring the Life of Guadalupe Castillo Mr. COSTA. Mr.”
House of Representatives28 April 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Lance Corporal Marcelino Gamino, a proud marine of Fresno, California, who gave his life in service to our Nation. A grateful nation can never ever say thank you enough to this fine young man and his family. As a young man, Marcelino answered the call to serve in May 2022, quickly rising to the rank of lance corporal by August 2024.”
House of Representatives28 April 2025Source ↗
“I am also pleased that my bill, the Headwaters Protection Act, is a part of this package. The bill will strengthen public and private partnerships in forestry and watershed management. Mr. Chair, we will have to find bipartisan additional funding sources. Our Nation's forests are critically overgrown. We need to have better management. That is clear. The commonsense changes are necessary to prevent wildfires for generations to come, but let's be clear. Much more needs to be done. We salute the brave firefighters and first responders who are acting today on a 24/7 basis.”
House of Representatives23 January 2025Source ↗
“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about Americans who are hurting, who have been suffering over the last 10 days as a result of the fires that have occurred in Los Angeles and south coast basin.”
House of Representatives15 January 2025Source ↗