California's higher education systems were spared deeper cuts in Gov. Gray Davis' budget revision Wednesday but university officials said they expect the Legislature to take millions more dollars away and students complained of fee increases already in the works.

The relatively good news for the California State University and the University of California could not mollify hundreds of students who protested at meetings of the systems' trustees and regents.

"Why is education the first to suffer?' asked Sarah Taylor, 21, a Sonoma State student who came to the CSU trustees meeting at Cal State Long Beach.

About 100 students briefly disrupted the UC Board of Regents meeting at UC San Francisco. "Whose university? Our university!' they chanted before leaving when threatened with arrest.

The state's 108 community colleges benefited from the revision, which reduces the budget hit on the 1.8 million-student system. Per-unit fees would rise from $11 to $18 instead of $24.

"We're not home yet, but it's a move in the right direction,' said Chancellor Tom Nussbaum.

"But if you look at the numbers, we were facing about a 10.5-percent reduction in January, and now we're facing a 5.5- percent reduction.'

At Sacramento City College, many students were relieved that the proposed fee hike was scaled back.

"It's not much of a discount, but, hey, we'll take what we can get,' said Megan Lee, 26.

Students also expressed concerns that cuts will make it more difficult to get the classes they need.

"It's tough,' said Neil Newell, 24, at Sacramento. "Especially popular general education classes that you need to transfer to a university. Those classes are already packed.'

That view was shared at Cal State Los Angeles.

"With the budget cuts I don't know if I am going to be able to get my classes and if I will be able to pay,' said student Lorena Muniz, 34.

At Long Beach, California State University's executive vice chancellor and chief financial officer, Richard West, said it was good news that CSU was spared further cuts "but we're not by any means out of the woods.'

The governor had already proposed cutting $260 million out of the state's $2.6 billion funding of the 23-campus CSU.

Chancellor Charles B. Reed told trustees the Legislature's Democrats are recommending cutting CSU's budget by at least an additional $69.5 million and Republicans are recommending an additional $200 million in cuts.

"There are very, very few alternatives here,' he said in an interview.

Reed asked the board to postpone a vote on raising student fees by up to 25 percent until the picture clears.

"We want to see what's going to happen,' he said. "I'm very concerned we could end up with an additional $70 million cut.'

He said that if that happened CSU would have to raise fees an additional 12.5 percent or turn away more than 10,000 students and lay off more than 1,000 faculty.

Reed said the governor's budget assumed the 25-percent fee increase for undergraduates and a 20-percent increase for graduate students.

Undergraduates currently pay $1,572 in state fees. With the increase they would pay $1,968. The numbers do not include campus fees. Graduate students' fees of $1,734 would rise to $2,082, not including campus fees.

"I am diametrically opposed to any fee increase because I think we will disenfranchise some students,' Trustee Ricardo Icaza told the board.

Icaza said the 25-percent fee hike would be the second increase this year. In December, trustees approved an increase of 10 percent for undergraduates and 15 percent for graduates.

Hayward State student Cindi Newbold, 48, told the board any fee increases could jeopardize accessibility for students. She recounted her story of working full time, raising her children and getting her undergraduate degree.

"It took me nine years to get that done,' she said, adding that her dream is to get a master's degree but that with a fee increase "I'm fearful that I will not be able to do that.'

"All we've heard today about these fee increases is how it will fix our budget,' said San Francisco State student Bruce Wolfe. "We prefer you challenge the governor to look at other areas in the budget such as prisons.'

At the UC meeting in San Francisco, UC Davis student Leon Arellano implored regents not to raise fees. "You increase my student fee, you cripple our communities and the society we live in,' he said.

Regents had been set to vote Wednesday on raising undergraduate fees by $795, which would bring the annual cost to about $5,000 when other fees are added.

But the vote was postponed due to uncertainty over what the final state budget would be for 2003-04.

The governor's current proposal includes $300 million in cuts for UC, which is developing its 10th campus.

Regents already approved a $405 increase effective this spring. That, taken with the proposed $795 increase, would mean a $1,200, or 35 percent, increase within two years.

"A lot of students are not going to be able to come to the University of California,' said Eric Lopez, a UCLA student.