We
see this as a triple win for ITS, Charis and our customers.
"Our system , ViaHerd, came out of one of the most extensive multinational
research projects ever undertaken concerning animal identification, movement
and disease control," said Joe Queenan, vice president and founder of
ViaTrace. America's livestock producers, ViaTrace and Microsoft are to be
commended for their initiative in swiftly deploying a robust system that
strengthens the value of our nation's livestock products and is highly
beneficial to producers, animal health authorities and government regulators .

farming branch

Within this specialized field, Charis provides
resource management, regulatory compliance, information technology,
range sustainability, airspace management and radio frequency spectrum
analysis. "This system is
designed to be confidential, cost-effective and easy to operate for the
industry while giving state and federal animal health authorities the
information they require to trace back livestock information in a timely
fashion. products and help
producers stay competitive.

welfare genetically

Animal
Identification Organization (USAIO), ViaTrace LLC and Microsoft Corp."
The database was developed by ViaTrace, a leading developer of
traceability software for government and industry, and has begun its initial
phase of accepting data. For this reason, ViaTrace
selected Microsoft(R) SQL Server (TM) 2005 as the database platform on which to
run the system, as well as other Microsoft software including Visual Studio(R)
2005, Windows Server(TM) 2003, Windows Mobile(R), Microsoft Office 2003 ,
Microsoft Windows(R) XP and Internet Explorer.

agriculture executive

agriculture focuses

A key customer is the Department of Defense, which relies on
Charis for environmental impact studies under the National
Environmental Policy Act , Resource Conservation and Recovery Act,
Endangered Species Act and other regulatory requirements .
"Livestock producers have recognized the need for a workable
identification and tracking system for disease surveillance purposes, which
affect our marketplace, both domestically and overseas ," said USAIO Chairman
Charles Miller, a beef producer from Nicholasville, Ky. Because
of the importance Secretary of Agriculture Johanns places on animal
identification, the newly launched system conforms to the guidelines set out
by the USDA's National Animal Identification System (NAIS).

branch agriculture

Sundling, ITS President and CEO, said, "Acquisition of
carefully selected companies is a key element of our corporate
strategic plan.
The company projects greater than $60 million in revenue this year.

NOTE: Microsoft, Visual Studio, Windows Server, Windows Mobile and
Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

genetically famines

----ITS Corporation
(ITS) today announced the acquisition of Charis Corporation, a company
that specializes in environmental science, engineering and program
management services required by government and commercial customers.

concerns executive

They provide
information systems support and special studies that apply scientific
advances and new regulations in range land management and information
database technologies.
competitiveness in the world marketplace and protecting the livelihood of U.
Rep.S.

executive farming

, the company has more than 50
employees and estimates fiscal 2004 revenue at $3 million dollars. The company specializes
in information technology and engineering services -- enterprise
management, studies and analysis, IT security, business information
management and systems development + integration. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns has publicly expressed his support
for a private, industry-led approach to developing a national animal movement
database because such a system would help ensure that producers retain
ownership and control of their confidential business data. In addition, he has
stated that helping to safeguard the health of livestock is vital to U.

genetically usda

Like ITS, Charis is a solutions-oriented
company that has earned a fine reputation in its target industry. Many
in the livestock industry felt that the demands of the marketplace dictated
the need to have a viable, proven system in place as soon as possible.

genetically food

since January 2005 , and have
resulted in the gathering of a significant amount of data in those regions. The first step for producers who want to participate in the
system is to contact their state veterinarian or animal -health professional to
register for a premises ID.

famine modified

Headquartered in San Bernardino, Calif."

About ITS

ITS, founded in 1974, provides professional services and solutions
to a wide range of government agency clients.
producers who depend on exports of their products to other countries .
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the
trademarks of their respective owners.

sustainable executive

Acquiring Charis is a major milestone in aggressively
implementing our plan.S .

famines food

ITS Acquires Charis Corporation; Acquisition Will Strengthen Engineering Services Provided by Government Integrator

Since 2000, ITS has been
ranked number one in overall satisfaction among GSA ANSWER customers.newscom.S. During this phase, producers will have a range of
options for entering data about their animals and herds, from using a mobile,
wireless device in the field, such as an HP iPAQ Pocket PC, to using their
home or office PC, or even using the telephone or paper-based forms to submit
their information."
This animal identification system has the potential to be one of the
largest private databases ever to go online, so it is essential that the
underlying platform include the most advanced technologies to help ensure that
the system has improved security, is flexible and is capable of managing large
amounts of information from a variety of devices."
An increasing number of domestic and international buyers are requesting
source and age verification of the livestock they purchase, and having a
database in place is essential to maintain the value of U.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services
and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

welfare famine

"The ViaTrace alliance reflects our commitment to providing
innovative technology solutions to business and government. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, expressed support for an industry-led system:
"I like to see the free market work, and I want to see the nation 's ranchers
succeed.

hunger concerns

Sundling added that both he and John Gifford, President and CEO of
Charis , "are excited about the future because of the synergy created
between our two companies.S. This cutting -edge, user-friendly database, developed by
ViaTrace and operated on a Microsoft(R) platform, will give federal and state
animal health authorities access to vital information in the event of a
disease outbreak or animal health-related incident.

marketplace sustainable

Thomas D. Current customers
include Office of the Secretary of Defense; Departments of Defense
(Navy, Army and Air Force), Interior, Commerce and Agriculture;
General Services Administration (GSA); Department of Veterans Affairs;
and the Department of Homeland Security.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO )
U. In
addition, the National Bison Association has collected data on bison from 10
states to date. "The system is multilingual, multispecies, fully customizable, and
included direct input from Microsoft's leading software experts.

genetics genetically

S. Pilot projects sponsored by the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have been under way in 17
states in the Northwest and Southeast U.
The database system will also allow animal health officials to trace
individual animals to their source within 48 hours in the event of a disease
outbreak or other events that affect animal health, including a bioterror
attack.

executive departments

"
Founded in 1995, Charis works with a variety of local, state and
federal agencies in the environmental services arena.
(Logo: http://www. in
the United States and/or other countries.

departments poverty

Industry-led National Animal Movement Database Meets Government Requirements
While Helping to Protect Livestock Producers ' Confidential Information

WASHINGTON, The U.S. During this phase, data is being collected from
existing state and association projects. We are
honored to work with the USAIO and to support the livestock producers of
America in this challenging initiative.

sustainable food

focuses executive

The USAIO board includes representatives
from beef cattle and bison associations as well as regional identification
networks , and will grow as other livestock producers and species groups get
involved.

departments farming

Business Editors

OXNARD, Calif. The USAIO will work with livestock
associations, data service providers and animal health authorities to
encourage producer participation.

animal branch

High-Tech Animal Database Launched to Help Ensure U.S. Livestock Producers Maintain Competitive Edge in the Global Marketplace

food issues

(Nasdaq: MSFT) today announced the launch of an industry-led, multispecies
animal tracking database to record movements of livestock from point of origin
to processing.
The database will be operated by the USAIO, a nonprofit, independent
consortium whose goal is to involve multiple species producer groups in
managing its day-to-day operation.
The second phase of bringing the system online, which is expected to begin
in the third quarter of 2006, will allow individual producers to input data
about their herds directly.
"Microsoft is proud that ViaTrace chose our products as the foundation for
the animal tracking database," said Curt Kolcun, general manager for Microsoft
Federal."
The effort to develop an industry-led, private animal identification
database was originally driven by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association
(NCBA) out of their members' concern about data confidentiality and the speed
with which government animal identification systems could be implemented.