1. There is hereby created in the state treasury a fund to be known as the "Lewis and Clark Discovery Fund". The state treasurer shall deposit to the credit of the fund all moneys which may be distributed to it by the authority, appropriated to it by the general assembly, and any gifts, contributions, grants, or bequests received from federal, private, or other sources for deposit into the fund. The office of administration shall administer the fund. The moneys in the fund shall only be used for any purpose enumerated in subsection 2 of this section. The moneys in the fund may be appropriated by the general assembly, but only for any purpose enumerated in subsection 2 of this section. None of the moneys in the fund shall be considered state funds unless and to the extent such moneys are appropriated by the general assembly.
2. The general assembly may annually appropriate moneys from the Lewis and Clark discovery fund only for the following purposes:
(1) To support funding of capital projects at public colleges and universities, provided that moneys shall not be appropriated to any public college or university that knowingly employs, as of September 1, 2007, any person, as a professor or instructor, required to be registered under sections 589.400 to 589.425; and
(2) To support funding for the Missouri technology corporation's ability to work with colleges and universities in identifying opportunities for commercializing technologies, transferring technologies, and to develop, recruit, and retain entities engaged in innovative technologies.
3. Moneys in the fund shall be invested by the state treasurer in the manner prescribed by law for investment of general revenue funds and any interest earned on invested moneys shall accrue to the benefit of the Lewis and Clark discovery fund and shall reduce payments by the authority pursuant to subsection 2 of section 173.385. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 33.080 to the contrary, moneys in the Missouri Lewis and Clark discovery fund shall not revert to the credit of the general revenue fund at the end of the biennium.