The Columbus father of a special-needs son is reaching out to fellow Cummins employees and the community, seeking donations of tablet computers to help others with similar circumstances.

Work to raise money and recondition donated tablets for children has become a personal mission for David McArdle, Columbus, who began collecting tablets about this time last year.

McArdle said his 6-year-old, special-needs son, Brady, has improved in letter and word recognition using an iPad for reading, something the youngster now loves to do.

Seeing how much an iPad was benefiting his son, McArdle created his own charitable group, Tablet REconnect, to gather donations of new and used tablets and e-readers.

McArdle, a Cummins pilot, refurbishes the tablets and updates them with the most current operating system, then gives them away to special-needs children in Batholomew County.

About 40 children received tablets last year, McArdle said. About five more have been on a waiting list for the past two months, he said.

McArdle and about 15 Cummins volunteers will be accepting donations of tablets, e-readers or cash at various locations around Columbus from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday.

Anyone wishing to donate a tablet, e-reader or money may stop by The Commons or the lobby of the Bartholomew County Public Library, he said.

Cummins’ employees may drop off donations at the Corporate Office Building or Cummins Office Building in The Commons, said Jon Mills, Cummins’ spokesman.

The volunteers also will be accepting old cellphones, which are taken to a recycling agency that pays the Tablet REconnect group, McArdle said.

Money raised through donation of cellphones and cash donations are used to pay for kid-proof iPad cases and gift cards that allow the youngsters to purchase apps from The App store, so the family doesn’t have any expense in using the tablet, McArdle said.

The group will take any iPad or tablet that is donated, although the first generation of iPads can’t support the latest operating system; those iPads are usually recycled for money, he said.

Any iPad 2 or newer tablet will support the operating system and can be refurbished for a youngster to use, McArdle said.

The organization can provide donors with paperwork needed to claim tax deductions for the tablet donation.

The group is hoping that area businesses that are upgrading their technology and tablets for employees might be willing to donate old tablets to Tablet REconnect, McArdle said.

Tablet REconnect will continue accepting applications from families of special-needs children who are seeking a tablet to help with their child’s development.

“We’re partnering with Arc of Bartholomew County,” McArdle said. “Lots of families will use the tablets for a child’s language articulation — many of these children are nonverbal,” he said. “This way they have a way to communicate.”

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Anyone interested in helping Tablet REconnect may contact Cummins pilot David McArdle at david@tabletreconnect.com.

For more information, visit tabletreconnect.com or find the group on Facebook.

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What: Tablet REconnect donation drive

When: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday

Where: Donate iPads, tablets or e-readers, or used cellphones at:

• The Commons, 300 Washington St.
• Bartholomew County Public Library, 536 Fifth St.
• Cummins employees may donate at the Corporate Office Building or Cummins Office Buildings at The Commons.

Anyone who donate tablets or $100 for gift cards and cases will be entered to win an iPad mini.

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Bartholomew County sheriff’s detectives have arrested an Edinburgh man on two counts of sexual misconduct with a minor.

Gonzalo Ocampo-Velazquez, 22, was taken into custody Tuesday in the 100 block of West Main Cross Street in Edinburgh.

He is being held at the Bartholomew County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond, according to the sheriff’s department. He is accused of making inappropriate contact with a 14-year-old girl on multiple occasions during the past year on Facebook, investigators said in a news release.

The arrest is the culmination of a three-month investigation by sheriff’s detectives Jason Lancaster and Chad Swank.

Lancaster said the charges stem from physical contact between the suspect and the teenager, which occurred in Bartholomew County in a vehicle.

The two befriended each other on Facebook, and a somewhat mutual relationship progressed, Lancaster said.

“Although there are many positives for using social media, parents need to be aware of the social media sites their children are using, and they should educate their children about the dangers of social media as well,” Sheriff Matt Myers said.

The sheriff’s department was assisted by the Edinburgh Police Department in making the arrest.

Bartholomew County likely would gain $1 million to $2 million a year in tax revenue if state legislators pass a commuter tax being proposed at the Statehouse.

Local officials from counties that stand to benefit said it’s money that, in the hands of local communities and entities, could help pay for critical infrastructure the county, cities and towns are working hard to maintain, as well as providing more funding for libraries, fire districts and schools.

A pair of lawmakers from Indianapolis and Kokomo are pushing for a greater share of the local option income tax coming out of people’s paychecks to go to the county in which they work.

Currently, counties pull a very small portion — less than 1 percent — from each person who works in one county but lives in another county. The rest goes to a person’s county of residence.

But legislators at the Statehouse may consider upping that rate to anywhere from 25 to 50 percent of the sum of income tax rates under two separate proposals, one authored by Rep. Cherrish Pryor, D-Indianapolis, and the other put forward by Rep. Michael Karickhoff, R-Kokomo. Both proposals now sit before the House committee that reviews tax proposals, where members can decide whether to explore the idea or let it die without a hearing.

With about 8,000 more people commuting into Bartholomew County rather than leaving to work elsewhere, Bartholomew would be one of 28 counties to benefit from a shift of up to $211.6 million in tax revenue that would begin in 2016.

Columbus Mayor Kristen Brown is all for Pryor’s proposal, which the mayor and City Attorney Jeff Logston estimate would mean about $1 million in additional revenue for the city from county adjusted gross income tax and economic development income tax dollars.

That money would “go a long way bridging the gap” between the $2 million needed for annual road maintenance and the $400,000 the city draws in gas-tax revenue, Brown said.

The proposal also would mean a more equitable distribution of revenues, as each employee coming into the county for work consumes services and contributes to wear and tear on critical infrastructure, she said.

“We’re happy to have people come here and work. They help our economy in many different ways,” Bartholomew County Council at-large member Evelyn Pence said. “But that does cause extra wear and tear on our roads.”

If passed, either proposal could have a positive effect for the county, but the legislation likely would have to get through a lot of hoops, Pence said.

Other counties that aren’t net importers like Bartholomew likely will oppose the bills, she said.

Marion County would gain about $84 million from Pryor’s proposal and $42 million from Karickhoff’s. But legislators in suburbs surrounding Marion County, whose counties would lose the income tax money, already are lining up to put a stop to the bill.

Purdue University professor and state tax expert Larry DeBoer said he doesn’t expect the proposal will get much support, since most counties will lose tax revenue compared with few who gain, he said.

“This is just a zero sum game, a direct transfer from the out-commuting counties to the in-commuting counties. So you can count the votes to see which legislators represent winners and which represent losers and have a pretty good idea what will happen,” DeBoer said.

Local legislative reaction

Two state legislators representing large portions of Bartholomew County aren’t jumping at the chance to support the proposal just yet.

Rep. Milo Smith, R-Columbus, said he hasn’t paid much attention to either proposal, as he’s focusing on his own legislation and bills that are getting a hearing.

Smith said he isn’t sure either proposal will get a hearing.

Sen. Greg Walker, R-Columbus, also doesn’t expect the proposals to pick up much traction in the House. He said his first impression is that the commuter tax is being driven as a Marion County proposal.

There have been bills that provide for intergovernmental agreements on transportation such as light rail or rapid bus, but none that generates revenue to pay for those systems, Walker said.

“This seems like kind of a long shot at creating some revenue for that concept,” he said.

Walker, who also represents part of Johnson County, said lawmakers also would have to discuss the proposals’ potential effect on migratory patterns from county to county.

Pryor, a former member of the Indianapolis City-County Council, said the proposals aren’t a new idea.

She sits on the Ways and Means Committee for the House of Representatives, which would hear both proposals, and said the panel has discussed legislation like this before.

Her proposal calls for taxing nonresidents at half the rate of those who live in any given county, but she isn’t necessarily wedded to that number, Pryor said. The bill is simply “intended to ensure that places in which people live and also in which people work have the opportunity to collect the local option income tax,” she said.

“We have an obligation to protect and take care of those individuals when they’re in our counties. We understand they have needs where they live as well,” Pryor said. “This is just a question of fairness and what level of the taxes should stay in either county.”

Staff Writer Steve Garbacz of the Daily Journal of Johnson County, a sister publication of The Republic, contributed to this report.

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People who live in Bartholomew County

53,878: County residents who are employed

49,188: County residents who work in their home county

4,690: Number who commute to another county for work

People who work in Bartholomew County

62,050: People employed at Bartholomew County businesses

49,188: Local residents who work in their home county.

12,862: People who commute into Bartholomew County from another county or state for work.

Source: Indiana Business Research Center, 2012 tax year information from Indiana Department of Revenue

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The deadline for applying for any kindergarten openings at Columbus Signature Academy elementary campuses is quickly approaching.

Any family interested in the project-based program should apply online before Saturday. Applications can be found on the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. website at bcsc.k12.in.us.

Campus tours are available Friday mornings.

A fourth Republican is seeking the GOP nomination for an at-large seat on the Columbus City Council in the May 5 primary.

Business owner Debbie Kramer, co-owner of Kramer’s Restaurant at 1606 Central Ave., filed paperwork to become a candidate Tuesday.

Kramer said she had been thinking about running for some time and would like to tackle issues including crime rates in Columbus and the need to improve infrastructure.

She also said she could bring something new to city hall.

“Respect would be a great word,” she said. “I think everyone should give respect for the position that they hold.”

Kramer said she supports Mayor Kristen Brown’s vision for Columbus over the next four years and said the past four years have been some of the city’s best.

She said she would be willing to do anything to improve the quality of life for animals in the city.

Kramer is one of four Republicans who are seeking the nomination for two city council at-large seats. Other candidates who have filed include incumbent Kenny Whipker, Laurie Booher and Charles Doup.

Downtown Columbus business owner Tom Dell is seeking the Democratic nomination for a council at-large seat.

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Age: 59

Address: 1502 Rockford Road

Employment: Co-owner of Kramer’s Restaurant in Columbus

Current office held: None

Past office held: None

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