The 5-0 vote by the state Public Utilities Commission will result in an immediate 9% increase for most residential power users and a hike of 7% to 15% for small businesses, commercial building owners and other types of enterprises. The state's two largest utilities, Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas & Electric, say they need an instant cash infusion or face possible bankruptcy because outside power companies are charging them more for electricity than they're allowed to charge their customers.

The PUC's unanimous vote apparently pleased no one. PG&E and Edison had sought much larger increases, while many consumer groups complained that ratepayers are now being forced to foot the bill for a disastrous deregulation measure the two big utilities pushed through the legislature in 1996.

"This is Day One of the ratepayer revolt in California," Harvey Rosenfeld, leader of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, told reporters after the PUC's meeting. Rosenfeld, an influential consumer advocate, says he'll push for a statewide ballot initiative in 2002 to re-regulate utilities.

After deregulation was approved in '96, both PG&E and Southern California Edison sold off most of their power plants for billions of dollars. Now they're having to pay a premium to buy electricity back from many of the smaller companies that deregulation spawned.

The rate hikes are supposed to last for only 90 days, as the PUC organizes hearings to devise a longer-term plan. The state legislature has opened a special session of its own, while Gov. Gray Davis is expected to outline his own plan on Monday. Allegedly,Davis has accepted more than $500,000 from utilities and energy providers since taking office about a year ago.

Not all property owners will be subject to the rate hikes. For example, most commercial property owners in Downtown LA won't see their bills go up because they're served by the city-owned Department of Water and Power, which refused to sell its power-generation facilities after deregulation was approved and more recently has been selling its excess electricity for a handsome profit. But barely 10 miles away, on the toney Westside, building owners will feel the pinch because they're served by Southern California Edison rather than DWP.