The Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, also known as Flag or FSO, is an American 501(c)(3)
non-profit corporation
A nonprofit corporation is any legal entity which has been incorporated under the law of its jurisdiction for purposes other than making profits for its owners or shareholders. Depending on the laws of the jurisdiction, a nonprofit corporation ma ...
. Within the worldwide network of Scientology
corporations
A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...
headquarters
Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...
" of the
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religiou ...
. The organization is located in Clearwater, Florida.Information from the official website of the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, retrieved on April 7th, 2008 "Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization 210 South Fort Harrison Ave. Clearwater, Florida 33756 USA 727-445-4387"
According to the official website of the Church of Scientology, "the Flag Service Organization (FSO) is a religious retreat which serves as the spiritual headquarters for Scientologists from all over the world. It is the hub of the Scientology worldwide community, a dynamic, multilingual organization and is the largest single Church of Scientology in the world with well over 1,000 staff members." Additionally, the FSO "delivers Dianetics and Scientology
services
Service may refer to:
Activities
* Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty
* Civil service, the body of employees of a government
* Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a ...
from the very bottom of
The Bridge The Bridge may refer to:
Art, entertainment and media Art
* ''The Bridge'' (sculpture), a 1997 sculpture in Atlanta, Georgia, US
* Die Brücke (''The Bridge''), a group of German expressionist artists
* ''The Bridge'' (M. C. Escher), a lithograph ...
to the top, as well as certain specialized
auditing
An audit is an "independent examination of financial information of any entity, whether profit oriented or not, irrespective of its size or legal form when such an examination is conducted with a view to express an opinion thereon." Auditing al ...
services only available here."
In a memorandum provided to the
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...
, the Church of Scientology International explained the role and the functions of the FSO as follows:
In another 1993
memorandum
A memorandum (: memorandums or memoranda; from the Latin ''memorandum'', "(that) which is to be remembered"), also known as a briefing note, is a Writing, written message that is typically used in a professional setting. Commonly abbreviation, ...
by the Church of Scientology International, the following information was provided to the Internal Revenue Service with regards to FSO's personnel and its income:
" ..CSFSO ..ministers high levels of religious services to parishioners from around the world from facilities in Clearwater, Florida. This church has a staff of approximately 449 individuals and an annual budget of approximately $ 81.3 million, based on its annual disbursements for the most recent year for which financial statements are available. ..
Corporate information
The FSO was incorporated in Florida on May 19, 1981. On September 21, 1993, the following individuals held
corporate
A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as "born out of s ...
positions at the organization: The
Board of Trustees
A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency.
The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...
was composed of Sue Price, Pam Hubbert and Richard Reiss. The members of the
Board of Directors
A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency.
The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...
at that time were Catherine Probst, Allen Hubbert and Debbie Cook. The corporation's President was Alicia Danilovich, its Secretary and
Treasurer
A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization.
Government
The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...
Catherine Probst. As of April 28, 2009, FSO's corporative officers were Lena Lind (President), Harvey Jacques (Director), Peter Mansell (Director), Glen Stilo (
Secretary
A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, program evalu ...
) and Barbara Meador (Treasurer & Director). FSO's registered
agent
Agent may refer to:
Espionage, investigation, and law
*, spies or intelligence officers
* Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another
** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuran ...
is currently Robert V. Potter.
On August 18, 1993, the FSO filed an application for
tax exemption
Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...
under section
501(c)(3)
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...
of the
Internal Revenue Code
The Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (IRC), is the domestic portion of federal statutory tax law in the United States. It is codified in statute as Title 26 of the United States Code. The IRC is organized topically into subtitles and sections, co ...
. The Internal Revenue Service granted FSO's request for exemption through an official recognition letter on October 1, 1993.
The
Religious Technology Center
The Religious Technology Center (RTC) is an American non-profit corporation Letter by the Internal Revenue Service to Flemming Paludan, Regional Director, Danish Tax-Office, Washington, D.C., USA, December 22, 1993 that was founded in 1982 by t ...
(RTC) holds the
trademarks
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a product or service from a particular source and distinguishes it from ot ...
and service marks of Scientology. As such, RTC entered an organizational
covenant
Covenant may refer to:
Religion
* Covenant (religion), a formal alliance or agreement made by God with a religious community or with humanity in general
** Covenant (biblical), in the Hebrew Bible
** Covenant in Mormonism, a sacred agreement b ...
with the FSO on January 1, 1982, granting FSO the right to sell and deliver the "Advanced Technology" to its public members while guaranteeing weekly payments to the RTC of 6% of the monetary value of the "Advanced Technology"-services delivered by the FSO.
The
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International (CSI) is a California 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Letter by the Internal Revenue Service to Flemming Paludan, Regional Director, Danish Tax-Office, Washington, D.C., December 22, 1993 Within the wor ...
(CSI) presents itself as the
mother church
Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral church, or ...
of the Church of Scientology worldwide. As such, it has the right to use and sub-license various Scientology trademarks and service marks. Consequently, CSI has entered a number of agreements with other
subordinate
A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an importan ...
organizations in the Scientology
hierarchy
A hierarchy (from Ancient Greek, Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy ...
, such as the FSO:
*"
License
A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...
Agreement". This agreement from May 26, 1982, regulates the use of the service marks and trademarks by the FSO.
*"
Scientology
Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by the American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It is variously defined as a scam, a Scientology as a business, business, a cult, or a religion. Hubbard initially develo ...
*
Dianetics
Dianetics is a set of pseudoscientific ideas and practices regarding the human mind, which were invented in 1950 by science fiction writer L.Ron Hubbard. Dianetics was originally conceived as a form of psychological treatment, but was reje ...
*
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religiou ...
*
Religious Technology Center
The Religious Technology Center (RTC) is an American non-profit corporation Letter by the Internal Revenue Service to Flemming Paludan, Regional Director, Danish Tax-Office, Washington, D.C., USA, December 22, 1993 that was founded in 1982 by t ...
*
Church of Scientology International
The Church of Scientology International (CSI) is a California 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Letter by the Internal Revenue Service to Flemming Paludan, Regional Director, Danish Tax-Office, Washington, D.C., December 22, 1993 Within the wor ...
*
Fort Harrison Hotel
The Fort Harrison Hotel has served as the main building of the Church of Scientology's campus in Clearwater, Florida, called the Flag Land Base, since 1975. It is owned and operated by the Flag Service Organization. The hotel has 11 stories, ...
*
List of Scientology organizations
The worldwide network of Church of Scientology organizations consists of numerous entities and corporations, located in the United States as well as in other countries. All these organizations are interrelated and connected through an internal h ...