In prepared congressional testimony to be given Tuesday, Richard Smith outlined steps the credit reporting company is taking to regain the nation’s trust. His appearance before a House subcommittee Tuesday morning is the first of several he’ll be making over the course of the week before House and Senate panels reviewing a data breach that affected an estimated 145 million Americans.

In his testimony, Smith offered apologies, an explanation of how the company allowed the hacking to occur and what it’s doing to limit the damage for consumers whose personal information, including Social Security numbers, birthdates and addresses, was stolen.

Smith said the company’s call centers were overwhelmed after the breach was announced on 7 September.

“Many needlessly waited on hold or were otherwise unable to have their questions answered through the call centers, which I deeply regret,” Smith said in his prepared remarks.