U.S. Congressman Bill Posey, seen here holding up a printed copy of the healthcare reform bill, stopped at the Valencia Community College campus Friday to hold a town hall meeting.
By Jessica Solis Staff Writer Calling U.S. Congress “pretty dysfunctional,” U.S. Rep. Bill Posey met with local constituents Friday to answer questions and outline his priorities for the new year in Washington, D.C.

The economy proved to be the recurring topic at the forum Jan. 8 at the Osceola campus of Valencia Community College, with Posey, the district 15 Republican congressman from Rockledge, saying he wanted Congress to have a detailed plan to help get the U.S. economy back on track.

“The banks in this country have money, but they’re not lending it... People have money to take vacations, but they’re not doing it,” he told the standing-room audience. “And the reason is because they’re scared of the future. The banks don’t know what you’re going to do to them tomorrow.”

He said both banks and Americans are hesitant to move forward, because they need more details about when and how the economy is going to improve.

“What will get us on track the fastest is if you could just show the American public what you’re game plan is – to know what tomorrow’s going to bring,” Posey said.

Among his priorities, Posey said, is to have Congress increase its budget accountability. He said he wanted D.C. lawmakers to balance the federal budget the same way state budgets are balanced.

“We need to hold the line on spending. Before we start promising people that we're going to give them things like health care, we need to fix the problems that we have now,” Posey said.

Health care was another hot topic at the forum.

Posey blasted the health care bill passed by lawmakers last month, calling the legislation rushed.

Posey voted against the House version of the bill, and said he would instead support a plan that would allow individuals to buy health insurance across state lines and small businesses to pool resources to purchase employee health care plans at a discount.

While he admitted, “the health system we have right now is broken,” Posey also said people should not be forced into having health insurance and said he supported federally funded community health care centers for the uninsured.

He also spoke out against recent plans by congressional leaders to bypass the formal congressional committee process used to combine bills passed by the House and Senate, and instead hold talks on the bill privately with President Barack Obama and White House officials.

Posey said he would plan on proposing a House resolution calling for the congressional committee process.

Among his other priorities to bring up in D.C., were to oppose cap-and-trade legislation, and pursue legislation to keep the NASA Space Shuttle program – set to end this year – alive until 2015.

Posey, along with U.S. Rep. Debbie Wassermann-Schultz, D-Weston, are co-sponsors of a House resolution that would allow NASA appropriations to keep the program alive.

“Space is the only thing that the United States is undeniably, unequivocally respected for around the world,” he said. “We need to maintain that military high ground.”

Posey, who held similar forums in Melbourne and Indian River County Friday and Monday, also answered anonymous questions he selected from a fish bowl.

Last year, he hosted a foreclosure seminar