City Council approved waiving $500 in late charges and minimum monthly charges for Grant George, a Cape Coral serviceman stationed in North Carolina.

Mayor John Sullivan brought the proposal forward when George’s mother came forward to ask to have those charges waived, he said.

Sullivan said the $500 could be paid out of the general fund.

“What they’re doing, the servicemen and women of this country, allows us to maintain our way of life,” Sullivan said. “We should support them in any way we can.”

City Council could also develop a program to aid other servicemen and women in a similar fashion, handing the duties over to Councilmember Chris Chulakes-Leetz.

Councilmember Bill Deile said he could identify with soldiers serving in combat in foreign lands and having difficulty paying their bills. Deile also supported coming up with a formal procedure so all of the city’s veterans could be treated equally.

“I had great difficulty paying bills when I was in Desert Storm,” Deile said.

Councilmember Kevin McGrail said he would prefer giving rate payers the opportunity to aid their fellow citizens by allowing donations on their water bills.

“I’d much rather make this voluntary,” McGrail said.

The waiver was approved 62, with McGrail and Marty McClain dissenting.

McClain said he’d received questions from the community about why this individual was being singled out for the city’s help.

“There’s not enough structure to this,” McClain said.