CLEVELAND (AP) - Ohio's governor plans to hire a consultant to look at whether the state should let a private operator run the Ohio Lottery.

A spokesman for Gov. John Kasich says his administration wants to find out the full value of the lottery and whether it makes sense to let an outside operator take over.

Kasich already is privatizing Ohio's job creation operation and some state prisons. He also wants to explore leasing the Ohio Turnpike.

The Plain Dealer newspaper in Cleveland says the governor hasn't yet made a final decision on putting the Ohio Lottery in private hands.

Critics have vowed to file lawsuits if that happens. They argue that state law says the lottery must be run by a state agency.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Energy Department says it will reduce its estimate of undiscovered natural gas in New York, Pennsylvania and other states following a new report by the U.S. Geological Survey.

The USGS report, released Tuesday, estimates that the Marcellus Shale region contains some 84 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, recoverable natural gas. That is far more than geologists had thought nearly a decade ago, but far below a recent projection by the Energy Department.

A spokesman for the Energy Information Administration says the USGS report supersedes a report last month by the energy agency.

That report projected about 410 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves in the eight-state region, which stretches from New York to Tennessee.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Ohio's highway department says 14 companies are bidding to help guide the state with the possible lease of the Ohio Turnpike.

Gov. John Kasich said earlier this month that he wants to hire a team of private consultants to help the state determine how to get the best financial bang from the turnpike.

Ohio's Department of Transportation says bids came from 14 companies, including investment banks and law firms from across the country.

Kasich's plan calls for the winning team to play a role in picking a private operator for the roadway if that happens.  The Republican governor believes leasing the turnpike could bring the financially ailing state as much as $2.5 billion.

NASA's watchdog says the space agency acted properly when it picked new homes for the retired space shuttles. The shuttles were awarded to museums in suburban Washington DC, Los Angeles, Cape Canaveral, Fla., and New York.

Dayton and Houston did not benefit from the decisions and had asked for an investigation, alleging political influences. In a report released today Thursday, Inspector General Paul Martin found there were no outside influences, including none from the White House. The decision making was based on attendance, population, funding and the facility.

PERRYSBURG, Ohio (AP) - Chrysler Group LLC plans to invest $72 million in a northwest Ohio factory and says it is negotiating with state officials over incentives.

The automaker wants to modernize the Toledo Machining Plant in Perrysburg to produce new-generation torque converters and steering columns. The converters would be paired with new transmissions Chrysler is making in Kokomo, Ind., as part of the automaker's strategy to meet fuel economy requirements.

The company says the upgrade and new equipment would help secure the factory's future and retain 640 hourly and salaried jobs there.

Work on the plant would begin this year and end by early 2013.

The facility currently makes steering columns for eight assembly plants, including one in nearby Toledo.

PITTSBURGH(AP) - The U. S. Geological Survey says the Marcellus Shale region contains some 84 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, recoverable natural gas, far more than thought nearly a decade ago.

Tuesday's figure is much higher than the last government assessment in 2002, which suggested about 2 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas.

The USGS says the estimate came from new information about the gas-rich formation underlying New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. Technical improvements in how wells are drilled also contributed to the new estimate.

The agency estimates 3.4 billion barrels of undiscovered, recoverable natural gas liquids.