According to Section I.C.5 of the 2006 Homeland Security Grant Program, all states are required to develop and adopt statewide communications interoperability plans by December 2007. To assist in this process and to ensure all states include essential components, the Department of Homeland Security’s SAFECOM program has identified the necessary criteria for a communications interoperability plan. In keeping with SAFECOM’s practitioner-driven approach, the program formulated the criteria with input from local and state practitioners. The guidance document includes a comprehensive criteria list for states to use during the plan development process. Criteria are organized by 10 major components of a statewide interoperability plan: background and preliminary steps; strategy; methodology; governance; technology; SOPs; training and exercises; usage; funding; and implementation.