[CAPTURE PORTAL] 119TH CONGRESS
Legislative Integrity Monitor
Goblin House Intelligence
Congress → Officials → Jim Costa

Jim Costa

Democratic · Representative, CA ·21

Jim Costa is the Democratic U.S. Representative (CA's 21st congressional district). The platform has 6 voting records on file (2023-2025) and 34 verified facts on file covering this member's voting positions, financial disclosures, and stated platform commitments.

Score Components
53 MODERATE
Connection Density 20%
78 → 16
Donor Influence 15%
64 → 10
Silence Risk 25%
48 → 12
Contradiction Risk 25%
40 → 10
Intelligence Volume 15%
36 → 5
Constituency Deviation 0%
20 → 0
Voting Misalignment 0%
0 → 0
% = weight in composite score · Raw component 0–100 × weight = weighted contribution (→) · Sum of contributions = overall score. Hover a row for details.
[constituency_baseline] Demographic anchor: bachelor's degree or higher: 17.2%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Demographic anchor: homeownership rate: 52.1%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Demographic anchor: Hispanic population share: 64.9%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Demographic anchor: SNAP participation rate: 28.4%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Demographic anchor: poverty rate: 18%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Demographic anchor: median household income: $64,764
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Ballot measure: Proposition 36 — Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act (2024) — passed, margin 68.4%-31.6%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Ballot measure: Proposition 1 — Behavioral Health Services and Bond Measure (2024) — passed, margin 50.2%-49.8%
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Dominant industry: NAICS 44-45 (share 0.11)
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Dominant industry: NAICS 62 (share 0.14)
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Dominant industry: NAICS 11 (share 0.185)
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Top employer: Community Health System (Fresno hospitals) (9000 employees)
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Top employer: Wonderful Company (agriculture/food processing) (5000 employees)
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] Top employer: County of Fresno (7800 employees)
secondary ✓ Verified
[constituency_baseline] District summary: California's 21st Congressional District encompasses portions of Fresno and Tulare counties in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley. Home to approximately 758,000 residents, it is a majority-minority district with a 64.9% Hispanic population and a median age of 31.9 — far younger than the national average. The district has a median household income of $64,764 with an 18%…
[ Show full fact ]
[constituency_baseline] District summary: California's 21st Congressional District encompasses portions of Fresno and Tulare counties in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley. Home to approximately 758,000 residents, it is a majority-minority district with a 64.9% Hispanic population and a median age of 31.9 — far younger than the national average. The district has a median household income of $64,764 with an 18% poverty rate (vs. 12.4% nationally) and 10.1% unemployment (nearly triple the national rate). Only 17.2% of adults hold a bachelor's degree. The economy is anchored in agriculture and food processing, with crop production, dairy, and agricultural services dominating. Homeownership is 52.1% — well below the national rate — while 28.4% of residents rely on SNAP benefits. The seat has a Cook PVI of D+5 but has trended R+3 recently; Costa won the 2024 election by only 5.2%.
secondary ✓ Verified
Voted yea on H.R. 3746 (Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023) on 2023-05-31: Costa voted for the Biden-McCarthy debt ceiling deal despite its SNAP work requirement expansions and NEPA streamlining provisions that progressive Democrats opposed. He was among 165 Democrats supporting the compromise — consistent with his Blue Dog identity and prioritization of agricultural stability over progressive purity.
primary · 2023-05-31 ✓ Verified
Voted yea on H.Res. 713 (Censuring Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and removing her from committees) on 2025-09-17: Costa was one of a small number of Democrats who voted with the GOP majority to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar. The vote passed narrowly and drew criticism from civil rights organizations including CAIR.
primary · 2025-09-17 ✓ Verified
Voted yea on H.R. 8034 (Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024) on 2024-04-20: Costa voted for $26.38 billion in military aid to Israel. His top career donor is AIPAC ($136,472 in 2024 alone). Meanwhile, his majority-Latino district includes progressive activists and younger voters increasingly critical of unconditional military aid. The vote illustrates donor-constituent cross-pressure.
primary · 2024-04-20 ✓ Verified
Voted nay on H.R. 1 (One Big Beautiful Bill Act) on 2025-07-03: Costa voted against the GOP tax-and-spending bill, citing $1.3 trillion in Medicaid/SNAP/ACA cuts that would disproportionately harm his district (18% poverty, 28.4% SNAP reliance). Yet his top donor sectors — Crop Production ($164,950) and Oil & Gas ($95,000) — supported the bill's permanent tax cuts. His vote aligned with constituents over donors.
primary · 2025-07-03 ✓ Verified
Voted yea on H.R. 29 (Laken Riley Act) on 2025-01-07: Costa was one of 48 House Democrats — and one of six from California — to support this GOP-led immigration bill requiring mandatory ICE detention for undocumented immigrants accused of certain crimes. The vote represents cross-pressure: his district is 64.9% Hispanic with many immigrant families, yet his moderate positioning requires demonstrating…
[ Show full fact ]
Voted yea on H.R. 29 (Laken Riley Act) on 2025-01-07: Costa was one of 48 House Democrats — and one of six from California — to support this GOP-led immigration bill requiring mandatory ICE detention for undocumented immigrants accused of certain crimes. The vote represents cross-pressure: his district is 64.9% Hispanic with many immigrant families, yet his moderate positioning requires demonstrating border-security credibility in a R+3-shifting district.
primary · 2025-01-07 ✓ Verified
Al Green voted_to_censure Costa was one of only 10 House Democrats to vote with Republicans to censure Rep. Al Green for disrupting Trump's address.
Vince Fong colleague Both are California House members; Fong from Bakersfield area adjacent to Costa's district.
AIPAC / United Democracy Project donor AIPAC is listed as top career donor; the group's PAC umbrella gives to Costa. Also voted for Israel aid bill (H.R. 8034) supported by AIPAC.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) voted_for_related_bill Costa voted for H.R. 29 (Laken Riley Act) mandating mandatory ICE detention for undocumented immigrants accused of certain crimes.
Ilhan Omar voted_to_censure Costa voted yea on H.Res. 713 to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar and remove her from committees, joining GOP majority.
David G. Valadao colleague Both represent neighboring Central Valley districts; Valadao is listed as a known House member from California.
Gilbert Ray Cisneros Jr. colleague Both are California House Democrats; listed in known entities as fellow House member from California.
American Israel Public Affairs Committee PAC donor $10,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (2 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00797670/
Across The Aisle PAC donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (3 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00696591/
Phillips 66 PAC donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (2 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00513549/
Cheniere Energy Inc. PAC donor $8,500 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (3 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00430157/
American Soybean Association donor $6,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (5 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00408468/
Cornpac donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (1 contribution), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00376343/
California Dairies Federal PAC donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (2 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00349746/
Blue Dog PAC donor $10,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (4 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00305318/
Ernst & Young PAC donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (2 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00227744/
Operating Engineers Local 12 Voluntary Legislative Fund donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (1 contribution), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00219568/
National Pork Producers Council Pork PAC donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (1 contribution), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00201871/
American Pistachio Growers Pistachio PAC donor $10,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (3 contributions), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00197715/
Western Growers Political Action Committee donor $5,000 to Jim Costa's principal committee in the 2026 cycle (1 contribution), FEC Schedule A line 11C. https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00193979/
BillVoteDateAlignment
PROOF Act Nay 2026-09-16 unknown
Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United… Nay 2026-09-16 unknown
Ratepayer Protection Act Yea 2026-09-16 unknown
An Act to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow early childhood… Yea 2026-09-16 unknown
Water Resources Development Act Yea 2026-09-16 unknown
National Fraud Enforcement Division Act Yea 2026-09-16 unknown
Retire through Ownership Act Yea 2026-09-16 unknown
Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Yea 2026-09-15 unknown
GUARD Act Yea 2026-09-15 unknown
Tax Relief for Fraud Victims Act Yea 2026-09-15 unknown
Directing the President, pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers… Yea 2026-09-15 unknown
Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes… Present 2026-09-15 unknown
Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United… Nay 2026-09-15 unknown
Providing for consideration of the bills H.R. 9576 and H.R. 10326, providing… Nay 2026-09-15 unknown
Fostering the Use of Technology to Uphold Regulatory Effectiveness in… Yea 2026-09-15 unknown
Providing for consideration of the bills H.R. 9576 and H.R. 10326, providing… Nay 2026-09-15 unknown
Whistleblower Protection Act Yea 2026-09-15 unknown
National Wildlife Refuge System Invasive Species Strike Team Act Yea 2026-09-14 unknown
Local Communities & Bird Habitat Stewardship Act Yea 2026-09-14 unknown
Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act Yea 2026-09-03 unknown
Protecting Domestic Mining Act Yea 2026-09-02 unknown
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to require… Nay 2026-09-02 unknown
Providing for consideration of the bills (H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, and H.R… Nay 2026-09-01 unknown
To amend the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 to extend the time period… Yea 2026-09-01 unknown
To amend the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 to extend the time period… Yea 2026-09-01 unknown
Providing for the condemnation and denouncement of socialism in all its forms… Nay 2026-09-01 unknown
In the matter of allegations relating to Representative Chuck Edwards Yea 2026-09-01 unknown
AGOA Extension Act Yea 2026-09-01 unknown
Providing for consideration of the bills (H.R. 1501, H.R. 9436, and H.R… Nay 2026-09-01 unknown
Local Access to Courts Act Yea 2026-08-31 unknown
Last contradiction analysis: Never
statement_vs_disclosure 60/100
Platform: "Costa positions himself as a progressive ally on key votes, voting with the AFL-CIO 92-97% of the time in recent cycles and receiving a lifetime labor score of 92%. He voted against H.R. 1 (OBBBA) calling it 'a direct…
[ Show full platform position ]
Costa positions himself as a progressive ally on key votes, voting with the AFL-CIO 92-97% of the time in recent cycles and receiving a lifetime labor score of 92%. He voted against H.R. 1 (OBBBA) calling it 'a direct attack on the communities I represent' that would 'gut Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP.'
"
Vote: on "Costa was one of only 10 House Democrats — and one of only two from California — to vote with…"
Costa votes with labor and progressive priorities on economic issues yet repeatedly breaks from his party on high-profile Trump-era culture-war votes — censuring Al Green, censuring Ilhan Omar, and supporting the Laken Riley Act. His district (64.9% Hispanic, D+5) is more progressive than his voting record, which…
[ Show full analysis ]
Costa votes with labor and progressive priorities on economic issues yet repeatedly breaks from his party on high-profile Trump-era culture-war votes — censuring Al Green, censuring Ilhan Omar, and supporting the Laken Riley Act. His district (64.9% Hispanic, D+5) is more progressive than his voting record, which reflects a Blue Dog centrism that satisfies agribusiness donors while frustrating progressive activists.
Last silence detection: Fri, 16 Oct 2026 00:37:20 GMT (via scheduled run)
other / unclassified
Across The Aisle PAC, North American Meat Institute PAC, International Fresh Produce Association, National Pest Management Association PAC, Western Growers Political Action Committee, American Pistachio Growers Pistachio PAC, Croplife America Political…
[ Show full donor-interest summary ]
Across The Aisle PAC, North American Meat Institute PAC, International Fresh Produce Association, National Pest Management Association PAC, Western Growers Political Action Committee, American Pistachio Growers Pistachio PAC, Croplife America Political Action Committee, California Dairies Federal PAC, California Almond Industry (amounts: $5,000 (2026), $5,000 (2026), $6,000 (2024), $5,000 (2024), $5,000 (2026), $10,000 (2026), $6,000 (2026), $5,000 (2026), $7,000 (2024)) — interest area: other / unclassified
corporate pacs, industry unlisted
J.R. Simplot Company Political Action Committee, Dunkin' PAC, Hilmar Cheese Company, Inc. PAC (amounts: $5,000 (2024), $5,000 (2024), $8,300 (2024)) — interest area: corporate pacs, industry unlisted
colleagues' leadership pacs
Fair Shot PAC, Bridge The Gap PAC, Building Relationships In Diverse Geographic Environments PAC (Bridge PAC), Jobs, Education, & Families First Jeff PAC, Ca Luv PAC (California Leadership United For Victory PAC), AmeriPAC: The Fund for a Greater America…
[ Show full donor-interest summary ]
Fair Shot PAC, Bridge The Gap PAC, Building Relationships In Diverse Geographic Environments PAC (Bridge PAC), Jobs, Education, & Families First Jeff PAC, Ca Luv PAC (California Leadership United For Victory PAC), AmeriPAC: The Fund for a Greater America (amounts: $7,000 (2026), $5,000 (2026), $5,000 (2026), $10,000 (2026), $7,500 (2026), $10,000 (2026)) — interest area: colleagues' leadership pacs
party committees
Blue Dog PAC, Chc Bold PAC (amounts: $10,000 (2026), $10,000 (2026)) — interest area: party committees
party & leadership pacs
Blue Dog PAC, Chc Bold PAC, Ca Luv PAC (California Leadership United For Victory PAC), AmeriPAC: The Fund for a Greater America (amounts: $10,000 (2026), $10,000 (2026), $7,500 (2026), $10,000 (2026)) — interest area: party & leadership pacs
National Beer Wholesalers Association PAC (Nbwa PAC) Alcohol & tobacco $5,000 (2026)
Altria Group, Inc PAC Alcohol & tobacco $5,000 (2024)
Wine Institute Political Action Committee Alcohol & tobacco $5,500 (2026)
Ca Luv PAC (California Leadership United For Victory PAC) Colleagues' leadership PACs $7,500 (2026)
Chc Bold PAC Party committees $10,000 (2026)
Blue Dog PAC Party committees $10,000 (2026)
AmeriPAC: The Fund for a Greater America Colleagues' leadership PACs $10,000 (2026)
American Israel Public Affairs Committee PAC Law & lobbying firms $10,000 (2026)
Us Energy PAC (The PAC Of American Exploration & Production Council, Inc.) Oil, gas & mining $6,000 (2024)
Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation Furthering Agriculture For Rural Mississippians Fund PAC Agriculture & food $5,000 (2026)
Across The Aisle PAC Other / unclassified $5,000 (2026)
Bridge The Gap PAC Colleagues' leadership PACs $5,000 (2026)
California Almond Industry Other / unclassified $7,000 (2024)
Jobs, Education, & Families First Jeff PAC Colleagues' leadership PACs $10,000 (2026)
Fair Shot PAC Colleagues' leadership PACs $7,000 (2026)
TopicPriorityAlignmentDeviation
Environmental Regulation & Air Quality 68 55 35
Public Safety, Homelessness & Retail Theft 85 60 30
Healthcare Access & Rural Hospital Funding 90 65 28
Government Ethics & Rule of Law 60 55 25
Immigration & Farmworker Visas (H-2A) 88 70 25
Agricultural Water Supply & Central Valley Project 96 75 20
Cost of Living, Inflation & Tax Relief 87 72 20
Foreign Policy & War Powers 45 70 15
Small Business & Local Economy 72 74 14
Education & Workforce Development 75 80 12
Social Security & Medicare Protection 80 78 8
Water Infrastructure & Drought Resilience 82 88 8
No platform commitments archived
No committee memberships recorded
Scoring Methodology

The Capture Risk Score is a composite 0–100 index measuring potential regulatory capture of elected officials. It is computed from seven weighted components:

ComponentWeightSignal
Contradiction Risk30%Stated positions contradicted by the record (recent findings boosted)
Donor Influence20%Distinct documented donors (FEC Schedule A PACs); inferred donors do not count
Connection Density20%Mapped relationships to lobbyists, contractors, interest groups; donor links excluded
Silence Risk15%Topics where donors have interests but the official is silent
Intelligence Volume15%Documented facts from verified sources
Constituency Deviation0%Shown, not weighted — a model estimate, not a record
Voting Misalignment0%Shown, not weighted — needs platform commitments almost nobody has; the roll-call record on /votes is the vote signal

Each component is the member's standing among all scored members of Congress, and the weighted sum is the overall score. Tiers are ranks: Critical is the top 5%, High the next 10%, Elevated the next 20%, Moderate the next 30%, and Low the rest.

Officials without at least 2 documented facts, 1 contradiction analysis, 1 voting record, or 1 constituency baseline are marked Insufficient Evidence and excluded from numeric ranking.

Contradiction findings from the last 180 days receive a recency boost. High-severity contradictions (score ≥ 70) receive additional weight.

Full methodology: /congress/methodology

[PUBLIC COST ESTIMATE]
Documented financial relationships span 0 money flow chains, while 4 elected officials hold documented connections.
$7.6BDonor Contributions
0Money Chains
0Traced Hops
Connected Officials
Calculation Methodology

Contract values are summed from documented money flow chains where this entity appears as a source or destination node. Amounts are drawn from USASpending.gov, FEC filings, SEC EDGAR, or LD-2 lobbying registrations.

Donor contributions aggregate documented amounts from the donor_interests table, sourced from FEC individual and PAC contribution filings.

Connected officials are elected officials in our database with a mapped relationship (lobbying, board membership, campaign contribution, etc.) to this entity.

Annualised flow represents the total documented dollar amount traced through money flow hops involving this entity. Where hop-level amounts are unavailable, the chain-level documented total is used as a conservative upper bound.

All figures are drawn from public filings. Estimates are conservative — undisclosed transactions, dark money, and vanish-point hops are excluded from totals. This is a minimum documented floor, not a ceiling.

View Full Entity Profile →