Congress introduced bills in reaction to the financial crisis,
such as the Dodd-Frank Act. Additionally, there is a number of
other bills that will likely never be considered outside of
committee. One such bill is the Too Big to Fail, Too Big to Exist
Act, H.R. 4963.
The Act, presently with the Financial Services Committee,
defines "too big to fail" as any entity that has grown so
large that its failure would have a catastrophic effect on the
stability of either the financial system or the U.S. economy
without substantial government assistance. Pursuant to the Act,
within 90 days after enactment, the Secretary of the Treasury is
required to provide to Congress a list of all banks, investment
banks, hedge funds, and insurance companies that the Secretary
believes are too big to fail. Beginning one year after enactment,
the Secretary of the Treasury is required to break up the entities
deemed too big to fail.
