- Record: House Floor
- Section type: Recognition
- Chamber: House
- Date: May 13, 2026
- Congress: 119th Congress
- Why this source matters: This section came from the House floor portion of the record.
Mr. DIAZ-BALART asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)
Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, this past weekend, our State, our country, and this institution lost a dedicated public servant, a friend of all of us, and a former colleague, Congressman Bill Posey.
Legislature. He did so honorably and with passion. Then he served here in the people's House for 16 years as well, representing both the 15th and the Eighth Congressional Districts of Florida. He served on various committees, including Financial Services and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
Mr. Posey had a deep, unwavering love and passion for our great country. He had a strong commitment to his beliefs, but he always was respectful to his colleagues. Again, his deep passion and love for the United States was evident to all of us who knew him, or who dealt with him. We respected him. He was a devoted public servant.
Mr. Speaker, it is interesting. I learned so much from him just having lunch with him, because he was also somebody who was a fountain of knowledge, of wisdom, and of experience, but always with humility, with passion, with joy, and with love.
- Katie; his daughters, Cathi and Pam, and the entire Posey family.
- and colleague who we have lost.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).
Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
- the wryest of senses of humor, that Bill Posey was.
career. We were elected together in the class of 1992 in the Florida House of Representatives, and just like my friend, Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, I, too, served with Bill in the Florida House of Representatives and Florida Senate, along with here in the United States House of Representatives.
he had to serve his constituents on the Treasure Coast and the Space Coast was the same all the way through to his final day serving in this body.
During his time in Tallahassee and Washington, D.C., Congressman Posey was dedicated to fighting for funding for NASA. He was NASA's champion and securing Florida's role as the leader in space launches and operations.
in the State of Florida, including his yearslong work to reauthorize and prioritize funding to clean up our Nation's estuaries.
stand up for what he believed in, even if his own party wasn't going in the same direction.
prevent children in Florida from drowning in residential swimming pools when his party went the other way on that, passing the first swimming pool safety legislation in the State of Florida together. He worked with me to try and make condo buildings safer following the horrific collapse and tragedy of Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, which I represented at the time.
My heart goes out to Katie, his life partner. There were no spouses that I remember more than Bill and Katie, who were inseparable.
To their family, may the memory of Bill Posey be for a blessing. I appreciate the opportunity to mourn his passing.
Mr. DIAZ-BALART. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Haridopolos was President of the Florida Senate and served with Bill Posey in the State legislature and then again as the person who succeeded our wonderful friend, Bill Posey.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Haridopolos).
Mr. HARIDOPOLOS. Mr. Speaker, our country lost a true patriot on Saturday night. He loved this country like no other and taught all of us here so much about our country and about what love is all about.
- side. He loved his daughters, Pam and Cathi.
He was just a remarkable guy who really never “went Washington.” His heart was always in Brevard County. As Mr. Diaz-Balart and Ms. Wasserman Schultz said as well, he had a passion for the space industry.
Before he was ever elected, he served at Kennedy Space Center. He was a part of those amazing rockets that led us during the Cold War.
He served his community with honor. He was always the guy showing up at every meeting. After the 2000 election,
But I knew Bill best as a friend. He was a person who always took the time with all of us who wanted to understand the intricacies of how legislation was passed and how to really get things done.
- to Bill. Here in Congress, he served so ably for 16 years.
Brevard County. But his heart was closest with his wife, Katie. As was said so well, and I want to say it again, they were inseparable.
mission to make sure that the values and principles that founded this Nation were always pushed forward.
Mr. Speaker, I request a moment of silence to remember our good friend and an American patriot, former Congressman Bill Posey.