Religious Technology Centre

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 the Church of Scientology to control and oversee the use of all of the trademarks, symbols and texts of Scientology and Dianetics. Although RTC controls their use, those works are owned by another corporation, the Church of Spiritual Technology which is doing business as L. Ron Hubbard Library, registered in Los Angeles County, California.

While exercising authority over the use of all Dianetics and Scientology materials, RTC claims that it is not involved in the day-to-day management of the Church of Scientology; that role is assigned to a separate corporation, the Church of Scientology International (CSI).
According to the RTC website, "RTC stands apart as an external body which protects the Scientology religion and acts as the final arbiter of orthodoxy" and its stated purpose is "to protect the public from misapplication of the technology and to see that the religious technologies of Dianetics and Scientology remain in proper hands and are properly ministered."

Since 1987, David Miscavige has served as the organization's chairman of the board.

In a 1993 memorandum by the Church of Scientology International, the following information was provided to the Internal Revenue Service with regards to RTC's role and functions, its personnel and its income:

" ..RTC ..owns the Scientology religious marks and advanced technology. It licenses the marks to CSI for sublicense to subordinate churches and directly licenses the advanced technology to appropriate churches. Through this structure RTC assures that practice of the Scientology religion within the ecclesiastical hierarchy under CSI's authority as Mother Church remains strictly orthodox, in accordance with the Scientology Scriptures. This church has a staff of approximately 50 individuals and an annual budget of approximately $ 6.6 million, based on its annual disbursements for the most recent year for which financial statements are available. ..

The RTC guarantees the “purity and workability of Scientology so far into the future,” thus engaging in programs to “restore, preserve, maintain and keep uncorrupted” the church's "religious technology," according to Scientology spokesman Eric Roux.

Corporate information

RTC was incorporated on January 1, 1982, in Los Angeles, California, by Terri Gamboa, David Mayo, Norman Starkey, Phoebe Mauerer, Lyman Spurlock, Julia Watson, and David Miscavige. Six months later, on June 15, 1982, the Articles of Incorporation were restated. On April 8, 1986, they were amended in order to clarify the disposition of RTC's assets upon the dissolution of the corporation.

At present the official address of RTC is 1710 Ivar Avenue, Suite 1100, Los Angeles 90028, in the Hollywood Guaranty Building, while its main offices are on a big estate complex at 19625 Highway 79, Gilman Hot Springs 92383, California, as it was stated in a supporting document of Scientology's tax-exempt application to the IRS during the years 1992/1993.

On September 21, 1993, the following individuals held corporate positions at RTC: The Board of Trustees was composed of David Miscavige, Gregory Wilhere, and Norman F. Starkey. The members of RTC's Board of Directors were at that time Mark Rathbun, Warren McShane, and David Miscavige. RTC's President was Mark Rathbun, its Secretary Warren McShane, and its Treasurer Barbara Griffin.

As of February 5, 2001 RTC's corporate officers were Warren McShane (Chief Executive Officer/President), Laurisse Stuckenbrock (Secretary), and Barbara Griffin ( Chief Financial Officer/Treasurer).

As of March 14, 2008, RTC's official agent has been the attorney Sherman D. Lenske from the law firm Lenske, Lenske & Abramson ALC, Warner Atrium, 6400 Canoga Avenue, Suite 315, Woodland Hills 91367-2491.

On August 19, 1993, RTC filed an application for tax exemption under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Form 1023 - Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code - Religious Technology Center, Washington, DC, August 19th, 1993 In the same year the Internal Revenue Service granted RTC's request for exemption.

The granting of tax exemption to RTC and other Scientology corporations was preceded by years of continuous litigation between the IRS and the various entities of Scientology. According to former high-ranking executives, the Scientology organization had launched about 200 lawsuits against the IRS until 1991. During the same time, individual parishioners of Scientology had initiated 2,300 claims against the agency, challenging the denial of tax deduction for their services at Scientology organizations. Late 1991, the dispute over Scientology's tax-exempt status began to resolve through high-level meetings between David Miscavige and the then Commissioner of the IRS, Fred Goldberg, who encouraged a final resolution of the legal battle.

Main corporate activities

The Religious Technology Center (RTC) is the owner of certain trademarks and service marks. These marks and its related intellectual property form the "Dianetics spiritual healing technology" and the "Scientology applied religious technology".

Scientology organizations, like "Churches," "Celebrity Centres" or "Missions," derive their income from the worldwide sales of this "technology" in form of courses, books, etc. to their members or to the general public. The organizations receive the right to sell the "technology" through license agreements with RTC as license holder and/or the Church of Scientology International (CSI) as a sub-licensor. RTC and CSI in return derive their corporative income through the license fees, which in turn are obtained through those agreements. The licensing and its related actions are major corporate activities of the various Scientology-organizations. "License Agreement - CSI (Marks)", License Agreement between Religious Technology Center and Church of Scientology International, California, May 18th, 1982

Licensing of trademarks and service marks

* ''Religious Technology Center (RTC) and Church of Spiritual Technology (CST)''

Shortly after its inception on January 1, 1982, RTC received on May 16, 1982 "the ownership, supervision and control" of the trademarks and service marks identifying "Scientology applied religious philosophy" and "Dianetics spiritual healing technology" by the originator and founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard through an "Assignment Agreement".

This agreement was subject to an additional "Option Agreement" between Hubbard, RTC and another Scientology corporation, the Church of Spiritual Technology (CST). In two "Option Agreements" from May 1982, Hubbard granted CST the right to purchase at any time from RTC the "Marks", the "Advanced Technology" and all the rights to them for the sum of $100.

Parallel and similar-sounding agreements between Hubbard, RTC and CST were created during that period concerning the "Advanced Technology," which consists of unpublished derivates of Scientology's confidential "Advanced technology" ( OT Levels).

Under these agreements RTC is to turn over 90% of its net income to CST. A document from 1991, reflecting the "financial money flows" of RTC during the year 1989, showed a turnover of 59% of RTC's net income towards CST.

* ''Religious Technology Center (RTC) and Church of Scientology International (CSI)''

RTC and CSI entered a license agreement on May 18, 1982, granting CSI, the new "Mother Church of Scientology," the right to use and sub-license certain of the trademarks and service marks. In return for the grant of the marks, the agreement gave RTC practically an unlimited corporate control not only over the activities of CSI but also over every organization that is a sub-licensee of CSI.

In particular the agreement stated:

" ..d) RTC shall have the right to monitor all operations of CSI and its related organizations, inspect all books, records and facilities, pertaining to use of the Marks and receive sample specimens and summaries of literature, publications and products using the marks, ..e) RTC may, if it ever deems it necessary or advisable, send a corrective mission to any organization authorized the Marks to correct any deviation from the standards, specifications or guidelines of this Agreement, ..

Additionally RTC and CSI signed on January 1, 1982, an "Organizational Covenant" granting CSI the right to deliver the "Advanced Technology" to its staff members.

* ''Religious Technology Center (RTC) and Church of Scientology Western United States (CoSWUS)''

RTC and CoSWUS entered on May 23, 1985, an organizational covenant granting CoSWUS the right to sell and deliver the "Advanced Technology" to its public members while guaranteeing weekly payments of 6% of the monetary value of the "Advanced Technology"-services that are being delivered to the public from CoSWUS towards RTC.

* ''Religious Technology Center (RTC) and Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc. (FSO)''

On January 1, 1982, RTC and FSO signed an organizational covenant with similar content to the covenant between RTC and CoSWUS.

* ''Religious Technology Center (RTC) and other Scientology organizations''

RTC has entered over the years similar organizational covenants/license agreements with all the other "Advanced Organizations" (AOs) within the Scientology network. As all the AO's are integrated within a corporation, these agreements are formulated between RTC and these corporations, such as "Church of Scientology Flag Ship Service Organization, Inc." from Netherlands Antilles, the "Church of Scientology Religious Education College, Inc." from East Grinstead, England, the "Church of Scientology, Inc." from Sydney, Australia and with "Church of Scientology Advanced Organization Saint Hill Europe & Africa" (AOSH EU).

RTC has registered its service marks and trademarks in various countries all over the world. Due to certain legal restrictions for religious corporations in certain countries, RTC founded the corporation "Inspector General Network, Inc." (IGN) on June 7, 1985, which functions as a "secular" representative for RTC in those countries. In 1985 RTC entered with IGN a so-called "Reversion and Reservation Agreement", which regulated the rights and obligations with regards to the Scientology and Dianetics trademarks of the "secular" organizations IGN and "World Institute of Scientology Enterprises, Inc." (WISE Inc.), a dormant Delaware corporation.

Control of other corporations

At the time of RTC's filing for tax exemption, RTC controlled four other corporations:

* ''"Inspector General Network" (IGN)''

IGN has served as legal representative for RTC and secular registered owner of RTC's trade and service marks "in countries where contracts by religious corporations are not enforced". All corporate positions of IGN were held by members of RTC.

* ''"WISE, Inc."''

At the time of Scientology's application for tax exemption, WISE, Inc. has been a dormant corporation from Delaware. It had the same functions as IGN, prior to IGN's incorporation in 1985.

* ''"RTC Australia"''

RTC Australia was incorporated in 1986 as a regional office for RTC in Australia. It is a dormant corporation and has obtained tax exempt status.

* ''"Inspector General Network International AB" (IGN Int)''

IGN was incorporated in 1992 in Sweden. The organization was founded to register Scientology's trade and service marks as a nominee for RTC in countries, such as Libya or Iran "that do not recognize and will not do business with any United States entity".

Organizational structure and management

RTC stands hierarchically at the top of the Church of Scientology network. It has regulatory, corporate and ecclesiastical