Nine outstanding businesses have been selected as finalists in the 2006 Better Business Bureau International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics competition. The winners will be announced on September 18, 2006 at an awards ceremony to be held in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Presented annually since 1996, the BBB International Torch Award illuminates the long-term value of honest and honorable business practices. Leading up to this year’s competition, more than 1,000 businesses competed in local Torch Award competitions, with 100 businesses being nominated or qualifying for entry at the international level.

“Each finalist is proof that an outstanding reputation in the marketplace leads to long-term success. Businesses that do the right thing have a competitive advantage. They elicit the steadfast loyalty of their customers, employees, suppliers and vendors, and surrounding communities, which in turn boosts sales of their service or product,” said Steve Cole, president and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus.

Listed in alphabetical order by size category, the finalists for the 2006 BBB International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics are as follows:

Category 1 (1,000 or more employees)
Callaway Golf (Carlsbad, CA)
CarMax, Inc. (Richmond, VA)

Category 2 (100-999 employees)
Gentle Giant Moving Company (Somerville, MA)
Replacements, Ltd. (McLeansville, NC)

Category 3 (11-99 employees)
Charco Construction (San Diego, CA)
Church Hill Classics (Danbury, CT)
Ellenbecker Investment Group (Elm Grove, WI)
RestorAid Remodeling and Disaster Services (Cincinnati, OH)

Category 4 (1-10 employees)
Urbieta Construction, Inc. (Dayton, OH)

About the BBB International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics
The judging: The finalists and award-winning companies were selected by an independent panel of business ethics experts: Al Beatty, retired CBBB senior vice president; Hugh Gouldthorpe, senior vice president, Owens & Minor (2005 International Torch Award winner); Karen Heiting, business development coordinator, Integrated Project Management Company, Inc. (2005 International Torch Award winner); and Don Kornblet, senior vice president, Americall Group, Inc. and former CBBB Board member.

Award Criteria: Companies are evaluated against criteria including commitment to and demonstration of ethical practices in the marketplace; high standard of behavior toward customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and communities; truthfulness and accuracy of advertising and sales practices; ethical reputation among industry peers and communities in which they do business; and training and communications programs to assist employees in carrying out established ethics policies.

Previous winners of the International Torch Award are listed on the BBB central Web site at http://www.bbb.org/BizEthics/winners.asp.

If you are a consumer who is seeking additional information, or need assistance with a complaint against a business, please contact your local BBB, visit the BBB web site (http://www.bbb.org/) or call 703.276.0100.