59-1608.05.

State Settlement Trust Fund; created; use; investment.

The State Settlement Trust Fund is created. The fund shall be maintained by the Department of Justice and administered by the Attorney General. Except as otherwise provided by law, the fund shall consist of all recoveries received pursuant to the Consumer Protection Act, including any money, funds, securities, or other things of value in the nature of civil damages or other payment, except criminal penalties, whether such recovery shall be by way of verdict, judgment, compromise, or settlement in or out of court, or other final disposition of any case or controversy, or any other payments received on behalf of the state by the Department of Justice and administered by the Attorney General, but to include only those funds held in a trust capacity where specific benefits accrue to specific individuals, organizations, or governments. All money in the State Settlement Trust Fund shall be subject to legislative review, but shall not be subject to legislative appropriation. The fund shall be expended consistent with any legal restrictions placed on the funds. The fund shall be paid from the same budget program used to record revenue and expenditures of the State Settlement Cash Fund, except that the fund shall only be expended from a separate and distinct budget subprogram and shall not be commingled with any other revenue or expenditure. To provide necessary financial accountability and management oversight, revenue from individual settlement agreements or other separate sources credited to the fund may be tracked and accounted for within the state accounting system through the use of separate and distinct funds, subfunds, or any other available accounting mechanism specifically approved by the Accounting Administrator for use by the Department of Justice. Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.