FIRST CASE OF SWINE FLU IN WASHINGTON COUNTY:

The first case of H1N1 influenza, better known as swine flu, has been confirmed in Washington County.

Dr. Kathleen Meckstroth, director of the Washington County Health Department, said the local case involves a 12-year-old Belpre boy, who is suspected of having been exposed to an infected Wood County, W.Va. resident.

Since the outbreak began, Wood County has had about 30 confirmed cases of the new flu strain.

The Ohio Department of Heath reported Thursday 48 confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus in the state; five probable cases; and 29 other suspected cases.

Meckstroth said the Belpre case "is very mild." A small percentage of individuals who have contracted the virus have died, but most have had other medical conditions which caused complications.

OHIO REVENUE FORECAST GOES EVEN LOWER:

COLUMBUS (AP) - Gov. Ted Strickland's budget director confirmed state lawmakers' gloomy expectations Thursday, saying they would have $2.3 billion less in revenue to use to craft the upcoming two-year budget.

This comes one day after a credit rating agency downgraded the state's rating, possibly making it more expensive for the state to borrow money.

The downtrodden forecast will force lawmakers to reconsider whether they can afford to spend money on a range of social programs and big-ticket items lawmakers and Strickland have been trumpeting for months, including a continued tuition freeze at the state's four-year colleges and universities in the upcoming year, and an overall increase in spending for public education.

Lawmakers favor cutting as they have been reluctant to raise taxes and have not agreed on any meaningful new revenue generating options.

The gap between the spending plan currently in front of lawmakers and the expected amount of money they will have to spend is about $2.5 billion, Budget Director Pari Sabety said.

Sabety used the most optimistic of three scenarios predicting how quickly Ohio would recover from the recession, although even the most optimistic one assumes Ohio will recover more slowly than the nation as a whole.

DANN FINED $1,000 FOR CAMPAIGN FINANCE VIOLATION:

COLUMBUS (AP) - The case against former Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann, who resigned last May amid a sexual harassment scandal, ended on Thursday with a $1,000 fine.

All but one of the remaining campaign finance violations against him will be dismissed as part of the agreement.

The Ohio Elections Commission voted 5-1 to accept the settlement agreement between Dann and the state. As part of the deal, Dann and Dann's campaign will acknowledge that his use of campaign funds to pay for a trip to San Francisco for his family was in violation of state law. The state will acknowledge that Dann has already refunded some of the money and didn't intentionally break the law.

Both parties agreed that Dann and his campaign would pay a $1,000 fine, the maximum available under the law.

The agreement was negotiated over the past two weeks. It reflects that the commission has already found Dann in violation of election law for using campaign funds for installation of a security system at his Youngstown home and for personal use of a cell phone, and that a key figure in the harassment scandal is facing a 10-count indictment.

The 7-member panel fined Dann for the two earlier violations but declined to refer him to prosecutors.