THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE:

Assemblyman Chuck DeVore drew the attention of Sen. Barbara Boxer with his latest satirical video using rocker Don Henley’s music.

DeVore drew Henley’s ire earlier this month when he produced a video poking fun at President Obama, sang to the tune of Henley’s “Boys of Summer.” Henley demanded YouTube take down the video, and now DeVore is contesting the cease-and-desist order.

In the meantime, he wrote some new lyrics taking aim at his potential rival in the Senate election next year using another Henley song, “All She Wants to do is Dance.” Not surprisingly for the conservative Republican, DeVore’s version is “All She Wants to do is Tax.” Again, his director of new media, Justin Hart, rocks the mic. But the production values are better this time, as Hart secured time in a professional studio, thanks to a relative.

“He seems to spend a lot of time writing song lyrics. Is he running for senate or a Grammy nomination?” Boxer spokeswoman Rose Kapolczynski said. “On taxes, Sen. Boxer has a strong record of support for middle-class tax cuts throughout her career. And she has introduced bills this year to provide a tax credit for self-employed people who pay their own health-care premiums, to increase the tax credit for alternative fuel vehicles and a bill to increase the child-care tax credit. The economic recovery bill, which she strongly supported, included more than $200 billion in tax cuts, so while Chuck DeVore is writing song lyrics she is working for tax cuts in Washington.”

DeVore jabbed back with his own barb.

“That’s an interesting observation from a senator who has written a few books while a senator, including a novel that was written a few years after my novel. Oh, and by the way, her sales figures are weaker than my own [on Amazon.com],” DeVore boasted, referring to his novel “China Attacks” vs. Boxer’s “A Time to Run: A Novel.”

You can see DeVore’s latest video at: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=cZhN9xBdqcQ.

Budget cuts outlined

New revenues made up a small fraction of the 10-point plan Costa Mesa’s City Council passed, 3-1, Tuesday night to make up a predicted $19-million shortfall in next year’s budget, but the measures were a subject of close scrutiny and heated debate. The bulk of the package — about $16 million — includes cuts to personnel costs, to be achieved through layoffs, pay cuts, early retirements and limiting police and fire department overtime expenditures. The second biggest element is drawing about $3 million from city reserves.

The new revenues account for a little more than $1 million and consist of charging residents more for services provided by the fire department and getting more money from the operators of Costa Mesa’s public golf course.

One of the biggest revenue generators, the fire department estimates, would be charging businesses a fee of anywhere from $40 for simple small businesses to $1,600 for larger businesses to inspect their facilities for fire safety. Costa Mesa doesn’t charge for business inspections while many neighboring cities do, according to the proposal, and the city stands to make close to $350,000 per year.

Another significant revenue source would be to bill Costa Mesa residents for emergency response fees when the fire department responds to an accident or medical emergency. As it stands, Costa Mesans don’t pay for fire department fees (although they do pay ambulance fees) when they have to be treated on the scene and transported to a hospital with the help of the fire department. Non-residents pay both ambulance fees and fire department fees. By charging residents a $275 to $460 fee when they are transported, the city could recover $540,000 per year, officials estimate. Much of the money would then be covered by private insurance companies and federal and state social programs that insure Costa Mesa residents, making the extra fee less of a burden, proponents said.

An added $180,000 to $315,000 could be had if Costa Mesa contracted with a company that would bill auto insurance companies for the wear and tear on equipment used to clean up bad car accidents and extricate injured people from vehicles, the department estimates.

The last piece of the revenue-generation puzzle would be for Costa Mesa to recover more money from the public golf course. Greens fees would be raised on a regular schedule and Costa Mesa would pick up a bigger chunk of change, which would bring in an estimated $250,000.

Combined, the proposals amount to about $1.2 million or roughly 6% of the 10-point plan money. Union leaders and Councilwoman Katrina Foley say that millions more could be had by raising the hotel tax and business license fees, but tax increases have to be approved by voters before they’re put into effect and therefore would have to wait months if not years. It’s also abundantly clear that the political will is not there on the council to get those taxes on the ballot. Four out of five current council members have voted against putting the hotel tax and business license fees up for a vote.

CURRY NAMED TO OC PARKS COMMISSION

Newport Beach City Councilman Keith Curry has been named to the OC Parks Commission.

The Orange County League of Cities picked Curry earlier this month to represent coastal cities on the commission.

A seven-member board, the OC Parks Commission advises the Board of Supervisors on the development, acquisition, maintenance and operations of harbors, beaches and regional parks in the county.