You definately need a 1:8 or preferably a 1:7 twist in a heavy barrel.
The TIKKA or Savage seem to be the best for out of the box accuracy in your price range.
Nothing wrong with the Howas(I have one), Remingtons etc etc but in general they do need a bit of a fiddle.
Honestly though as it is going to be a range rifle I wouldn't stuff around with a factory rifle, I would buy an old .308 Omark for $200, get a gunsmith to fit a .223 kit and scope rail for around $800 and for $1000 you would have an absolute proven tack driver good to 1000 yards. (this is what I did when I found a .308 target rifle a bit harsh on my shoulder). Plenty of people have already done this and have won events on a regular basis. This setup will allow you to shoot competition F class.
For what it is worth I used to regularly take my .223 target rifle out and shoot crows at long distance.