There is hereby established the Virgin Islands Public Works Acceleration Authority as a public body corporate and politic of the Virgin Islands. The Authority shall constitute an instrumentality of the Government of the Virgin Islands within the sense and meaning of section 202(a)(1) of the Housing Amendments of 1955. The Authority shall have all the powers, rights, duties, privileges, functions, obligations and status as a public body corporate and politic as prescribed or provided by this chapter. The Authority shall be in the Department of Public Works for administrative purposes only.