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34 FED AND FDIC REJECT 'LIVING WILLS' e Federal Reserve and the FDIC have joint- ly determined that the 2015 resolution plans, or "living wills," of five domestic systemically impor- tant financial firms are "not credible," according to announcements from both agencies. Eight domestic systemically important banking institutions are required by Congress to submit living wills, which are plans as to how they would enter bankruptcy without causing widespread damage to the financial industry in the United States, i.e., the banks are required to prove to the government they are not "too big to fail." e rejection of the living wills of Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, JPMorgan Chase, State Street, and Wells Fargo by both the Fed and FDIC is likely to add more fuel to the fierce debate in Congress over whether or not Dodd-Frank is codifying too big to fail. While Dodd- Frank supporters claim that the controversial financial reform legislation ended too big to fail, at the same time, the eight firms have been designated as systemically important— meaning that their failure could trigger a financial crisis—by a council created by Dodd- Frank. "We believe that it is in everyone's best interest to end the debate on too big to fail—and that adequate levels of capital, liquidity, TLAC, stress testing, ISDA protocols—together with credible recovery and resolution plans—are all critical components and we are committed to their success," JPMorgan Chase CFO Marianne Lake said. Further fanning the flames in the debate over the effectiveness of Dodd-Frank was a report issued by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) earlier this week stating that a lack of transparency on the part of the Fed and FDIC in determining whether the living wills are credible "could undermine public and market confidence." "e secrecy and lack of accountability can lead to abuse by Washington regulators and is a tool for them to potentially exercise de facto management authority over major financial institutions," said Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. "Once again we're seeing the uncertainty created by Dodd- Frank and its regulatory burden that impedes economic growth and makes it more difficult for working Americans to achieve financial independence." According to the release from the Fed, "Section 165(d) of the Dodd-Frank Act requires bank holding companies with total consolidated assets of $50 billion or more and non-bank financial companies designated by the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) for supervision by the Federal Reserve periodically submit resolution plans to the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Each plan, commonly known as a living will, must describe the company's strategy for rapid and orderly resolution under bankruptcy in the event of material financial distress or failure of the company." e Fed and FDIC determined that the living wills of Bank of America, BNY Mellon, JPMorgan Chase, State Street, and Wells Fargo were "not credible or would not facilitate an orderly resolution under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, the statutory standard established in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act."

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