[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 125 (Thursday, September 16, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1670-E1671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    IN HONOR OF MR. DOMINIC CALABRO

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ALLEN BOYD

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 16, 2010

  Mr. BOYD. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the distinguished 
career of Mr. Dominic Calabro of Tallahassee, Florida, who is in his 
thirtieth year of public service with Florida TaxWatch, the statewide, 
nonpartisan, nonprofit government watchdog and research institute that 
has served the taxpayers of my home State of Florida for more than 
three decades.
  Mr. Calabro was first hired as a Senior Research Analyst for Florida 
TaxWatch in 1980, promoted to Executive Director in 1982, and has 
served as the CEO of TaxWatch since 1986. He has guided the growth of 
TaxWatch into a dynamic, influential organization dedicated to 
improving government productivity and taxpayer value through research 
and civic engagement. TaxWatch recommendations, approximately 70 
percent of which have been adopted by Florida's government, have saved 
billions of dollars for Florida taxpayers.
  In addition to identifying and working to improve government spending 
in the public interest, Mr. Calabro and TaxWatch are the key players in 
the annual Prudential-Davis Productivity Awards, a nationally unique 
public-private partnership that recognizes and rewards exceptional 
Florida state employees whose innovative work measurably increases 
productivity and saves taxpayer money.
  Mr. Calabro's hard work and dedication has helped Florida TaxWatch 
earn and maintain the respect of the state's most highly regarded and 
influential leaders, as well respect of the citizens of Florida and the 
state and national media. Mr. Calabro has received numerous honors and 
awards, including being named by the National Junior Chamber of 
Commerce as one of Ten Outstanding Young Americans for 1994, and during 
this same period, many Florida TaxWatch recommendations have served as 
the impetus for important changes to Florida budgetary and taxation 
policy, including the Taxpayers Bill of Rights of 1992, the Government 
Performance Accountability Act of 1994, the complete phase-out of the 
Intangibles Tax, and a recent Government Cost Savings Task Force that 
so far has saved the

[[Page E1671]]

state nearly $3 billion to weather the current economic climate.
  In addition to his many roles in government accountability, Mr. 
Calabro is involved in a number of community organizations, including 
the Florida Network of Youth and Family Services, the Tallahassee 
Chamber of Commerce, the United Way of the Big Bend, the Knights of 
Columbus, and the Board of Directors of Florida House.
  Mr. Calabro is also dedicated to improvements in public education. He 
is on the Board of Advisors for Florida State University's Graduate 
School of Social Work. Mr. Calabro also serves on the Florida Education 
Foundation and Communities in Schools of Florida.
  Mr. Calabro has been supported in all of his endeavors by his loving 
wife of thirty-one years, Debbie. Mr. and Mrs. Calabro are devoted to 
their four children, Diana, Dominic, Christina, and Danny.
  I ask my distinguished colleagues to join me in congratulating Mr. 
Calabro on his thirty years of service with Florida TaxWatch, and to 
wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors.

                          ____________________