The purpose was to find out "why things happened and ... what could have been done to avert this tragedy," said Thomas Kean, chairman of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States.
Families of the thousands who died in the terrorist attacks "want to make sure their loved ones didn't die in vain," Kean added.
On Monday, the commission was to hear from representatives of victims' families, and from the governor and the mayor. On Tuesday, Kean said, "people with particular experience in terrorism" will testify.
The 10-member panel is assembling a staff of 50 to 60 people to help with its investigation and to draft a report by May 2004.
Its scope is broad, covering issues such as intelligence, law enforcement, diplomacy, aviation, the flow of assets to terrorist organizations and the U.S. government's response on the day of the attacks.
President Bush signed the law creating the commission on Nov. 27 and named former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger as chairman. But Kissinger, who runs an international consulting firm, resigned 17 days later in response to questions about potential conflicts of interest.
Bush then turned to Kean, who was New Jersey's governor from 1982 to 1990. Since then he has been president of Drew University.
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