COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP): Ohio State Fair officials say vendors won't be permitted to sell Confederate flag merchandise at the event, which starts July 29.
 
 A letter Thursday to fair merchants from the general manager says the policy complies with the fair's long-standing rule banning the sale of merchandise with offensive wording, lettering or graphics.
 
 Fair spokeswoman Alicia Shoults tells the Northeast Ohio Media Group (http://bit.ly/1K9lhxz ) she isn't aware of any merchants who've sold the flag or related items at the fair.
 
 Any vendors selling Confederate flag merchandise will be asked to remove it.
 
 The flag has come under renewed scrutiny since nine black churchgoers were fatally shot during Bible study in Charleston, South Carolina, in June. The suspect charged in the shooting, Dylann Storm Roof, appeared in photos holding the flag.