A building at southwestern Illinois Air Force base will bear the name of late former U.S. Sen. Alan Dixon, if a federal lawmaker from Illinois gets his way.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin says the latest defense appropriations bill being considered in Congress includes his directive that the Air Force chief designates a Scott Air Force Base building in Alan Dixon’s honor.

Dixon died July 6 at age 86. The Democrat’s political career spanned more than 40 years. He was in the U.S. Senate from 1981 to 1993 and chaired a subcommittee of the Armed Services Committee.