(a) The purpose of this section is to grant the departments and agencies of the Government of the United States Virgin Islands the authority to expend monies received in the form of insurance proceeds for expediently replacing and/or repairing assets lost or damaged, thereby minimizing the interruption of governmental services.
(b) There is established in the Treasury of the Virgin Islands a fund to be known as the “Asset Recovery Fund”. The Commissioner of Finance shall provide for the administration of the fund as a separate and distinct fund in the Treasury of the Virgin Islands and no amounts therein shall be available for expenditure or disbursement except as provided in this section.
(c) The fund shall consist of all sums received as insurance proceeds to be used for replacing and/or repairing similar purpose assets or groups of assets which have been lost or damaged, and all sums appropriated thereto, from time to time, by the Legislature of the Virgin Islands.
(d) The Commissioner of Finance shall deposit the monies contained in the fund in interest earning accounts pursuant to chapter 117 of this title. The interest earned on the monies on deposit in the fund shall also be deposited into this fund.
(e) The Commissioner of Finance shall disburse monies from the fund upon authorization of the Commissioner or agency head specifically for replacing and/or repairing assets or groups of assets which have been lost or damaged. Disbursements shall not exceed the amounts deposited to the fund by the agency or department.
(f) The Commissioner of Finance shall maintain a detailed accounting record of all monies deposited into and disbursed from the fund and shall submit to the Governor and the Legislature annually, at the close of the fiscal year, a report on the financial status of the fund.