Jay Costa

Jay Costa (born November 17, 1957) is an American politician, currently serving as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate who has represented the 43rd District since 1996.[2] On November 17, 2010, Senate Democrats elected Costa as their new floor leader, succeeding the retiring Bob Mellow.[3]

Jay Costa
Minority Leader of the Pennsylvania Senate
Assumed office
January 4, 2011
Preceded byBob Mellow
Member of the Pennsylvania Senate
from the 43rd district
Assumed office
May 13, 1996
Preceded byMichael Dawida
Register of Wills of Allegheny County
In office
January 6, 1992 – May 13, 1996
Preceded byRita Wilson Kane
Succeeded byMarty Madigan (Acting)[a]
Personal details
Born (1957-11-17) November 17, 1957
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Roxanne Ross
EducationCommunity College of Allegheny County (AS)
Indiana University of Pennsylvania (BA)
Duquesne University (JD)
a.^ Madigan served as Acting Register of Wills until David Wecht was elected as Costa's permanent successor in 1997.[1]

Education

Costa attended the Community College of Allegheny County, earning an A.S. in 1977. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Juris Doctor from the Duquesne University School of Law.[4]

Career

Early in his career, Costa sponsored a plan to leverage rebates to lower drug costs for seniors. He also supported expanding the CHIP program and Medicaid.[5][6][7]

Costa has served on the board of trustees of the University of Pittsburgh and is treasurer of the Community College of Allegheny County board.[8][9]

In 2006, Costa voted to pass the Marriage Definition Constitutional Amendment, which legally defines marriage as between one man and one woman.[10] He is supportive of abortion rights and received a 100% rating from Planned Parenthood in 2013 and 2014.[11][12]

In May 2019, it was reported that Costa and State Attorney General Josh Shapiro had directed paid communications staffers to edit their Wikipedia pages with positive material.[13][14]

References
  1. Fischione Donovan, Sandra (May 21, 1997). "County races decided". The Allegheny Times. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  2. Cox, Harold (2004). "Pennsylvania Senate - 1995-1996" (PDF). Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
  3. Bumsted, Brad (November 18, 2010). "Pennsylvania political power shifts west". The Pittsburgh Tribune. Retrieved November 18, 2010.
  4. Center, Legislativate Data Processing. "Senator Jay Costa". The official website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Retrieved 2016-12-09.
  5. "Ban on procedures for transgender children endangers health insurance program". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  6. Reporter, South Pittsburgh. "Jay Costa, State Senate Democratic Leader, announces 2020 re-election campaign". South Pittsburgh Reporter. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  7. McClain, Heather. "Senator Jay Costa on Adopting Medicaid Expansion". wesa.fm. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  8. "Board of Trustees | Office of the Chancellor | University of Pittsburgh". chancellor.pitt.edu. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  9. "Senator Jay Costa, Jr". Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  10. Worden, Amy. "Anti-gay marriage bill fails in Senate committee". https://www.inquirer.com. Retrieved 2020-04-24. External link in |website= (help)
  11. "Legislative Scorecard". Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Advocates. Archived from the original on 27 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  12. "Jay Costa, Jr.'s Political Summary". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  13. BOARD, THE LNP EDITORIAL. "Public employees shouldn't be tasked with writing glowing entries for elected officials' Wikipedia pages [opinion]". LancasterOnline. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  14. Writers, CARTER WALKER and JUNIOR GONZALEZ | Staff. "Wikipedia flags Pa. Attorney General Josh Shapiro over glowing, staff-written bio". LancasterOnline. Retrieved 2020-04-24.

Media related to Jay Costa at Wikimedia Commons

Pennsylvania State Senate
Preceded by
Bob Mellow		 Minority Leader of the Pennsylvania Senate
2011–present		 Incumbent
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