The group has sent out mailers attacking both the City Council, and, particularly, Cindy Richards, who is up for re-election in District 5.

City Recorder LaNice Groesbeck, in a letter dated Nov. 3, informed the group that a section of the Provo City Code requires every candidate, campaign committee and political committee to sign and file a financial-disclosure statement.

The deadline for filing such documents for candidates was Nov. 1.

Groesbeck said Friday she had yet to receive any statement from the group. She said if she does receive one without any names attached, she would check with city attorneys to see if there is an issue with the anonymity.

"I would hope that there would be a name," Groesbeck said.

City attorneys could not be reached for comment Friday.

The Provo City Code is unclear as to whether names of the political group must be disclosed, but it does state that, like candidates, such a committee must report the donor name and amount for every contribution of more than $50.

State Elections Director Michael Cragun said state law only requires candidates to file financial disclosures, but municipalities, by ordinance, may require greater disclosure regulations.

One mailer sent out by the group cites articles in the Deseret Morning News and a Daily Herald editorial, saying, "Your City Council has provided . . . 27 percent increase in violent crime . . . $60 million tax increase and still overspending . . . [and] multiple cover-ups of city failures."

The News on Friday published an article explaining why the group's references to its articles were misleading.

Another mailer states, "Don't vote for Cindy Richards," and again cites the Herald and News in accusing Richards of not investigating the 911 call center and refusing to give taxpayers the right to vote on iProvo, the city-owned fiber-optic network.

Richards said the information in the mailers is not only inaccurate, but that Utahns for a Better Future, through its nondisclosure, also is acting illegally.

"Some read that postcard as an endorsement of these newspapers," Richards said. "The Provo voter deserves better. They deserve fair and accurate representation from the group that has a cause."

Joaquin Neighborhood Chairman Kurt Peterson said the mailer has been sent only to residents in District 5, Richard's district.

"The things that they're using do not support the points of view they're trying to spell out," Peterson said. "It's a smear tactic. It's frustrating - you can't even assess blame because it is anonymous."

The return address on the mailer, 3214 N. University Ave., corresponds to a mailbox in a UPS store. Employees there refused to disclose the name of the box's owner, citing federal law.

Adam Clark, Richard's challenger, said the mailers are frustrating him because he has nothing to do with them - yet people are tying him to the attacks.

"I don't appreciate [this group's] tactics," Clark said. "I don't approve of negative campaigning. That's not who I am; that's not what I stand for."

Failing to report the required financial disclosures or willfully falsifying or omitting the required information is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by a fine up to $1000 and/or six months in jail, according to the Provo City Code.

thollingshead@sltrib.com