State lawmakers have approved legislation to help small, rural towns struggling to maintain their aging water and sewer systems.

The bill, which still must be signed by Gov. Roy Cooper, would allow the Department of Environmental Quality to free up funds to help the towns of Eureka, in Wayne County, and Cliffside, in Rutherford County, pay their sewer bills.

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Rep. John Bell, R-Wayne, whose district includes Eureka, said about 15 to 20 towns statewide are close to dissolving because they cannot pay their bills. As businesses close up and the population shrinks, the remaining residents cannot afford to pay mounting bills for crumbling utilities, he said.

"I don't know how they made it this long," Bell said of Eureka, which has fewer than 200 residents.

"If you have a rainy month, you're looking at an enormous bill," said Keith Pender, a member of the Town Board.

Sewer bills can skyrocket to $28,000 when the system is overwhelmed by floodwater, Pender said, noting that the town can afford a bill of just $7,000 a month.

"Financially, we just couldn't pay the bills," he said.

Eureka pays the nearby town of Fremont to handle its sewage and send it to the treatment plant in Goldsboro, and Bell said that has produced a chain of debt.

"Fremont is backlogging debt from eureka, so, of course, Goldsboro is backlogging debt from Fremont," he said. "This is to get everybody caught up."

Bell is pushing for a regional sewer system for the area as the long-term solution, but he said "temporary Band-Aids" such as the emergency DEQ funding are needed in the interim.

The state's Local Government Commission has suspended Eureka's charter for five years and assumed control of the town's finances so it can get its head above water.

The mayor and Town Board members still meet monthly, but all budgetary matters are handled by the state.

"This town has had to do what it's had to do. It's tried its best," resident Steve Price said.

Bell said not rescuing the struggling towns isn't an option, noting the public health implications of dissolving the towns and leaving residents without water or sewer service.

Eureka can reclaim its charter as soon as its finances are in order.