There is no one "right" way to do planning. While every state in the nation is expected to develop a State Plan on Aging, each state brings to the planning table a wide range of resources, experiences, and expectations. Some states have created a “Planning Unit or Division” to oversee the State Plan, collect and analyze data, and monitor Plan implementation. Others assign a single planner the task of State Plan development. Still others expect all program managers to take on planning tasks and/or assign specific planning functions to staff as needed.

Given the wide variation in planning capabilities, it is unsurprising states’ needs for technical assistance also are varied. The TASC Planning Zone is intended to cover a broad range of states' planning needs.

Section 307(a) of the Older Americans Act requires each state agency to develop a State Plan on Aging, conforming to criteria outlined by the Assistant Secretary on Aging. States also are required to develop a uniform format for Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) to use in developing Area Plans.

While the Older Americans Act is an important funding source for states, state agencies on aging have other increasingly important programs for which they are responsible. The Administration on Aging expects SUAs to develop comprehensive plans that provide direction to states’ implementation of long-term care reforms.The programs that come under the jurisdiction of SUAs and Area Agencies on Aging also bring additional planning requirements to which SUAs must respond.

It is the Administration on Aging's intent that the Aging Network move toward a coordinated, systematic, and consistent planning process to ensure that the State Plan on Aging developed for the OAA also takes into account the larger world of SUA/AAA planning.