By Alabama Public Radio
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Senate has expanded a proposal by U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions to enhance death benefits for military families. The Senate voted Wednesday for an amendment sponsored by Massachusetts Senator John Kerry. The legislation would extend payments to all soldiers killed--regardless of whether they died in combat. The amendment could add $70 million each year to Sessions' original plan that applied only to combat deaths. Sessions voted against Kerry's amendment, citing cost commitments he had given the Armed Services Committee. The proposal is included in an $80.6 billion emergency spending measure to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It would entitle all soldiers killed while enlisted to $100,000 in benefits for their families.