Small businessman and Schuylkill County Tax Committee Chairman Larry Padora today announced his candidacy for Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts.

Padora's platform is to fix the financial mess in the recently scandalized office."I've always been someone who fixes things and makes them run better," Padora said. "The Clerk of Courts office needs a strong leader to institute checks and balances and proper controls, streamline the office, and provide transparency to the people of Schuylkill County."Padora, 41, runs the Italian Bakery in Tamaqua, which produces over 100,000 loaves of bread a year for area grocers and caterers.While large corporate stores have driven out many local family-owned businesses, the Italian Bakery has continued to thrive through hard work, proper planning, and dedication to quality.Padora was unanimously elected chairman of the county's tax collection committee, a bipartisan body comprising one delegate from each municipality and school district to oversee the collection of $21 million in local Earned Income Tax revenue. As Chairman, Padora has helped to negotiate one of the lowest tax collection rates in Pennsylvania.Padora is the president of borough council in New Ringgold, a town whose thrift has enabled it to increase public services while maintaining one of the lowest tax rates in the county. Council saved taxpayers $142,000 when they came in under budget on the installation of a federally-mandated, state-financed sewage treatment system.Last year, Padora and his colleagues saved New Ringgold $11,000 by sealing cracks in the town's roads themselves rather than hiring pricey contractors for the job.Padora is the former chairman of the Schuylkill County Republican Committee. He helped foster major reforms to the party's bylaws while leading the GOP to historic gains in county row offices in 2011. Padora resides in New Ringgold with his wife, Sonja, and daughters Cheyenne and Trinity.