While it’s been almost a year since Dominic Calabro stepped down as president and CEO of Florida TaxWatch, his legacy will remain visible to anyone passing the organization’s headquarters.

On Tuesday, Sept. 1, Florida TaxWatch will hold a ceremony in Tallahassee to officially rename its headquarters in Calabro’s honor, recognizing more than four decades of leadership.

Calabro joined what was then known as the Citizens Council for Budget Research in 1980, at just 24 years old, after serving as a House staffer. He was selected as executive director of the fledgling group and would go on to lead it for more than four decades, transforming it into a fixture in Florida government.

During his tenure, Calabro introduced the now-familiar term ‘budget turkey,’ a phrase that has become part of the Tallahassee lexicon. Each year, Florida TaxWatch continues to publish its list of budget items flagged for gubernatorial review before the final budget is signed. Under Calabro’s leadership, the organization rebranded as Florida TaxWatch and expanded its budget by a factor of 24 over 45 years.

Florida TaxWatch operates as an independent, nonpartisan nonprofit, serving as both a government watchdog and a taxpayer research institute. The group is known for its annual reports on the state’s economy and policy proposals, providing data and analysis for lawmakers and the public alike.

“We call like we see it,” Calabro said at a Florida TaxWatch dinner honoring his tenure in Orlando last year. “We’ll call out Ds and Rs, Rs and Ds. Doesn’t matter. We just focus on not who you are but what you do. Not what you say, but what you do to improve the value for the taxpayers of Florida.”

Although Calabro has retired from his longtime post, he continues to serve as president and CEO of the Florida TaxWatch Foundation, a new initiative he launched. He is scheduled to speak at the renaming ceremony, alongside current Florida TaxWatch President and CEO Jeff Kottkamp, a former Lieutenant Governor, and Chairman David Casey, who also serves as Senior Vice President at Maximum.

Former Florida TaxWatch Chair Piyush Patel, founder of Kyra Solutions, will also speak at the event.

The ceremony is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Sept. 1 at the Florida TaxWatch Headquarters, 106 Bronough Street, in Tallahassee.