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 hierarchy called the "Command Channels of Scientology".
Within the upper Church management echelon are several corporations with specific functions of publication, distribution, administration, and finances.
In a response to questions by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with regards to its application for tax exempt status, the Church of Scientology International provided to the IRS a list of Scientology corporations and entities, categorized by their functions and activities.
This resulted in the criminal conviction of eleven Scientologists in 1979, including L. Ron Hubbard's wife.
[23] In 2003, Heritage Properties International, a subordinate organization to Church of Spiritual Technology and formerly named Heritage Management Company Ltd., purchased the building at 1812 19th Street NW, and turned it into a Scientology museum named L. Ron Hubbard House.