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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20554
                              April 16, 2002


                
Vital Living Products, Inc.                       Vital Living 
Products, Inc.
dba American Water Service                        dba American 
Water Service 
5001 Smith Farm Road                         2300 Sardis Road 
North, Suite V 
Matthews, North Carolina  28104                   Charlotte, North 
Carolina  28227
Attention:     Donald R. Podrebarac, President/CEO     Attention: 
Henry Mummaw
          C. Wilbur Peters, Chairman of the Board           
Registered Agent
          Larry Pratt, Vice Pres., Admn and Dir. 
 
     RE:  EB-02-TC-048

Dear  Correspondents:

     This is an official CITATION issued pursuant to section 
503(b)(5) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the Act), 
for violations of the Act and the Federal Communications 
Commission's rules that govern telephone solicitation.1

     It has come to our attention that your company has delivered 
a prerecorded unsolicited advertisement to a residential telephone 
line (see attachment).  The Act and the Commission's Rules 
prohibit transmission of unsolicited advertisements through 
prerecorded messages to residential telephone lines except under 
the very limited circumstances described in the Rules.2   The term 
``unsolicited advertisement''  is defined in the Communications 
Act and the Commission's rules as ``any material advertising the 
commercial availability or quality of any property, goods, or 
services which is transmitted to any person without that person's 
prior express invitation or permission.''3    The attached 
information provided to the Commission indicates that your company 
delivered such an unsolicited advertisement, through a prerecorded 
message, to a residential telephone subscriber who does not have 
an established business relationship with your company and had not 
expressly invited or authorized the call.  That action violates 
section 64.1200(a)(2) of the Commission's rules.

     Separately, it appears that your company may have violated 
other Commission rules governing prerecorded messages and 
telephone solicitation.  Under section 64.1200(e)(2)(iv), any 
telephone solicitation - whether live or prerecorded - must 
provide the called party with the name of the individual caller, 
the name of the person or entity on whose behalf the call is being 
made, and an address or telephone number (which may not be for an 
autodialer or prerecorded message player) at which the person or 
entity may be contacted.4   According to the attached information 
received by the Commission, it appears that your telephone 
solicitation did not contain all the required information.

     Please be advised that subsequent violations of the 
Communications Act or of the Commission's rules of the type 
described herein  may result in the imposition of monetary 
forfeitures not to exceed $11,000 for each such violation or each 
day of a continuing violation. 5

     Pursuant to section 503(b)(5) of the Communications Act, you 
may request a personal interview at the Commission's Field Office 
nearest to your place of business. 
The nearest office appears to be the Atlanta Office at 3575 Koger 
Boulevard, Room 320, Duluth, Georgia 30096-4958.  You can contact 
the Atlanta Office by telephone at 
(770) 935-3370.  You must schedule this interview to take place 
within 21 days of the date of this citation.  Alternatively, you 
may submit a written statement to the following address within 21 
days of the date of this citation:

               Kurt A. Schroeder
               Deputy Chief
               Telecommunications Consumers Division
               Enforcement Bureau
               Federal Communications Commission
               445-12th Street, S.W.
               Washington, D.C. 20554 

If you choose to submit a written statement, your written 
statement should specify what actions have been taken to correct 
the violation(s) outlined above.  You should also include a copy 
of your company's written do-not-call policy as required by 
section 64.1200(e)(2)(i) of the Commission's rules.   Please 
reference EB-02-TC-048  when corresponding with the Commission.

     Under the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(e)(3), we 
are informing you that the Commission's staff will use all 
relevant material information before it to determine what, if any, 
enforcement action is required to ensure your compliance with the 
Act and the Commission's rules.  This will include any information 
that you disclose in your interview or written statement.  Please 
be advised that if you choose not to respond to this citation and 
a forfeiture is issued, your unresponsiveness will be considered 
in our assessment of a forfeiture amount.

     You should also be aware that the knowing and willful making 
of any false statement, or the concealment of any material fact, 
in reply to this citation is punishable by fine or imprisonment 
under 18 U.S.C. § 1001.

     Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation.

                         Sincerely, 



                         Kurt A. Schroeder
                         Deputy Chief 
                         Telecommunications Consumers Division
                         Enforcement Bureau
                         Federal Communications Commission

Enclosures

_________________________

1   47 U.S.C § 227; 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200.

2   The Commission's rules make it unlawful to ``initiate any 
telephone call using an artificial or prerecorded voice to deliver 
a message without the prior express consent of the called party 
unless the call is initiated for emergency purposes or ... is not 
made for a commercial purpose, is made for a commercial purpose 
but does not include the transmission of any unsolicited 
advertisement, [is made] to any person with whom the caller has an 
established business relationship at the time the call is made, or 
[is made by or on behalf of] a tax-exempt nonprofit organization.  
47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(2), (c); see also 47 U.S.C. § 227(b)(1)(B) 
(prohibiting all prerecorded calls to residential lines ``unless 
the call is initiated for emergency purposes or is exempted by 
rule or order by the Commission....'').

3   47 U.S.C.  227(a)(4); 47 C.F.R. 64.1200(f)(5).

4   47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(e)(2)(iv).  In addition, the Act and the 
Commission's rules impose separate identification requirements for 
prerecorded messages.  Under section 227(d)(3)(A) of the Act, all 
prerecorded messages ``shall, at the beginning of the message, 
state clearly the identity of the business, individual, or other 
entity initiating the call, and ... shall, during or after the 
message, state clearly the telephone number or address of such 
business, other entity, or individual.''  47 U.S.C. § 227(d)(3)(A) 
(emphasis added); see also 47 C.F.R. § 65.1200(d)(e)(2)(iv) 
(imposing identification requirements for prerecorded messages 
delivered by automatic telephone dialing systems).

5   See 47 C.F.R. § 1.80(b)(3).