The Government Accountability Office, the nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress, will issue the report. Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee, requested the report more than a year ago.

Colin Crowell, an aide to Markey, said that key portions will be unveiled at subcommittee hearings Oct. 17 and Oct. 31, with a GAO official testifying. The Senate Commerce Committee, led by Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, will hold a third DTV oversight hearing Oct. 17.

The GAO released its preliminary findings at a Senate hearing last week. Mark Goldstein, a GAO investigator, asserted that no one at the FCC and National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the agencies overseeing the switchover, is coordinating the overall transition.

"While private-sector organizations are conducting outreach efforts, these actions are voluntary and therefore the government cannot be assured of the extent of private-sector efforts," the preliminary report further warns.

NTIA, a division of the Commerce Department, is implementing a $1.5 billion coupon program designed to reduce the cost of converter boxes that citizens with over-the-air analog reception will need for their sets to function after the changeover. The FCC has taken steps to assure that cable customers with analog service will be able to receive local digital signals via cable.

Both NTIA and the FCC insist they are working aggressively to assure a smooth segue to digital, and each will make its case this week at back-to-back events. NTIA will host a public meeting Tuesday featuring remarks by the heads of the broadcast, cable and electronics manufacturing associations. On Wednesday, the FCC will hold a daylong meeting to hear from agency regulators, consumer advocates, industry stakeholders and minority groups.

On Monday, the National Association of Broadcasters bumped until Oct. 15 what it touted as an "unprecedented" announcement about the next phase of its educational efforts. NAB said the change was due to scheduling issues, but industry sources noted that NAB originally set the announcement for Monday when it appeared the Senate hearing would be held Tuesday.

On Friday, NTIA announced that it has certified Digital Stream, a South Korean company, as the first provider of coupon-eligible converter boxes. NTIA must begin accepting coupon applications on Jan. 1, but the agency does not have to mail the coupons to citizens until the boxes reach store shelves, which it says will be in early 2008.