Gov. Tony Knowles has vetoed a bill that would have criminalized the knowing spread of the virus that causes AIDS.
The legislation would have made it a felony to sell tainted blood or have sex with a partner ignorant of the diseased condition without giving a warning.
As he vetoed the measure Friday, Knowles, a Democrat, said the bill would have been counterproductive, causing people with HIV to fear testing and treatment.
The bill, passed last month by the Republican-controlled legislature, “would for the first time criminalize a disease in Alaska. No other disease has ever been criminalized–not tuberculosis, not syphilis, not diphtheria, not even typhoid,” he said.
The bill is unnecessary, he said, because Alaska has laws criminalizing reckless endangerment and various forms of assault.
Republican State Sen. Robin Taylor, who sponsored the bill, said the governor was wrong about the measure’s potential effects.
He said that officials in other states where similar laws are in place “said they saw no decrease in testing.” He said he will seek a legislative override of the veto.
