A Michigan lawmaker has proposed a bill to protect artwork held by the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) from being sold by the city to cover billions of dollars of debt. Detroit is scrambling to avoid bankruptcy.

Detroit's $15 billion to $17 billion in bond debts and retiree pension and health care costs is causing the city's emergency manager, Kevyn Orr, to eye the collection of the museum as potential assets to be sold.

No proposal has been made to the museum by city officials, but Orr did speak with DIA leadership to give them a heads up about the possibility of creditors seeking repayment of debts through sales of city-owned assets such as the museum and its artwork.

USA Today via Detroit Free Press reports, "Senate Bill 401 would amend a state law passed in 2010 to allow for a regional millage that voters approved to support DIA operations. It would add a key provision: 'An art institute shall adhere to the code of ethics for museums published by the American Alliance of Museums or a successor organization.'"

The argument to keep DIA intact would hinge on this code of ethics which prohibits sales of museum objects to settle debts.

(UPDATE: An article yesterday stated that the city's debt was about $15 million. It is approxiamately $15 billion to $17 billion, according to the Detroit Free Press.)