The Senate Committee on the Armed Services approved a $612.5 billion defense authorization bill Thursday that includes full funding for the Air Force's KC-45 aerial refueling tanker program, U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) announced.

"This is great news for the tanker project," Sessions said.

After a lengthy competition, the Air Force announced in February that it had chosen a team led by Northrop Grumman to build the tanker, with much of the aircraft to be built in Mobile, Alabama.  Critics of the decision have suggested they would attempt to defund the tanker program rather than allow the Government Accountability Office to confirm the Air Force's selection.

Providing full funding in the committee's bill was a critical step toward ensuring that production of the much-needed tanker starts on schedule.

"I am pleased that the Committee refrained from interfering with the GAO's  independent review of the tanker competition and moved to fully fund this vital program," Sessions, a senior member of the committee, said.  "I will continue to work to ensure that Congress follows the lead of the Armed Services Committee and respect the review process that is established by law.  Doing so will ensure that our men and women in the military get the best tanker available."

The defense authorization bill approved by the Committee Thursday also includes two important policy initiatives sponsored by Sessions.

Sessions urged the Committee to adopt language to express the sense of Congress that the Department of Defense should permanently assign military forces to the U.S. Northern Command to respond in the event of a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear attack on America. 

The U.S. military has not assigned particular units to such a mission.  Under the current force configuration, NORTHCOM would be forced to borrow personnel from other units, delaying response time and effectiveness.  

 "Given the current threat environment and the general risk of a terrorist attack at home, it makes sense that we specifically train and equip our troops to respond in case of an emergency," said Sessions.