Barrington Man Eyes Malik's Seat

Peter Costa Jr. has set his sights on representing voters in Barrington and Warren for his first elective office.

Costa, 22, a Republican from Barrington, will formally announce his candidacy for the District 67 State House seat held by Rep. Jan Malik of Warren in a few weeks.

“But this is it,” Costa said Tuesday of declaring his run for the District 67 seat.

One of his primary reasons for seeking the seat held by Malik since 1997 is “accountability,” Costa said.

“Look at the incumbent’s record,” he said. “I don’t know if he is running again. But he missed 355 votes last year – the second highest number in the House.”

Costa cites the legislative website, RhodeIslandVotes.org, as his source for that number, which shows 826 roll calls and Malik missing about 42 percent of the votes.

“I will be accountable,” he said. “When legislators don’t vote, it is not representative democracy. You need to be accountable to your constituents. Communication between legislators and their constituents doesn’t end on election day.”

People want representatives who serve them, he said. Sometimes they lose sight of whom they serve when they are in office too long.

Indeed, Costa said, he favors term limits.

Costa believes there is a strong need for more Republicans in the legislature who will focus on the needs of people for jobs, lower taxes and “getting government off our backs.”

“These are issues for everyone,” he said. “There are 62,000 Rhode Islanders who are looking for work and cannot find a job. The Democratic General Assembly has made us (Rhode Island) less competitive.”

Costa said he would focus on three areas if he is elected: Common sense reforms of the tax code; relying on industries that work in Rhode Island, such as manufacturing, hospitality and health care, and getting people back to work.

The recent Davidson College graduate said he would bring ideas on policy that he has picked up from other states that have lifted themselves out of the economic recession, such as North Carolina, Indiana, and Texas.

“I don’t think the legislature realizes how much public policy can impact the economy,” said Costa, who describes himself as something of a “policy wonk.”

“I don’t think they know how to grow the economy,” he said of the legislature. “I have had some unique experiences with things that work out of state. I don’t think they have knowledge of how public policy impacts an economy.”

For instance, Costa said, to improve the business climate in Rhode Island, he would eliminate the minimum corporate tax and lower the corporate income tax to make Rhode Island more competitive with neighboring states.

To help property taxpayers, he said, he would push for a 1 percent tax cap on residential property and eliminate the car tax.

To reform government and improve legislator accountability, he would push for zero-based budgeting and term limits for state legislators.

Costa considers himself a fiscal conservative but a moderate Republican on social issues.

“I want a limited government that lets people live their lives,” he said.

Costa plans to enroll at Roger William University Law School in August. The Barrington native is a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission. He is on the April 24 ballot as a delegate for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

Costa does know his way around the State House, he said. He was a page for Barrington Sen. David Bates for four years while at Barrington High School, and he spent a couple of months early this year as a policy intern.

Why not start his political career on the local level, perhaps on the Barrington Town Council?

“I think I can make a bigger impact as a representative,” he said.