In its June report, the Congressional Oversight Panel (COP) gives the Treasury Department's "stress tests" a passing grade, though not exactly high marks.  And the panel warns that "serious concerns remain," and offers these recommendations: highlights the importance of America’s small businesses to the country’s overall economic well being:

-The unemployment rate climbed to 9.4% in May, bringing the average unemployment rate for 2009 to 8.5%.  If the monthly rate continues to increase, the 2009 average may exceed the  8.9% assumed under the more adverse scenario, suggesting that the stress tests should be repeated if that occurs. 

-Stress testing should also be repeated so long as banks continue to hold large amounts of toxic assets on their books.

-Between formal tests conducted by the regulators, banks should be required to run internal stress tests and should share the results with regulators.

-Regulators should have the ability to use stress tests in the future when they believe that doing so would help to promote a healthy banking system. 

COP chair Elizabeth Warren explains the panel's approach to evaluating the stress tests by comparing them to the types of questions American families are asking with regard to their own financial standing during the recession:

Read the full report here.