Teachers say they've seen teachers leave the profession because of poor pay, lack of resources.

The group will determine what competitive teacher pay should look like for Indiana, and make policy recommendations to the governor and lawmakers on how to achieve competitive compensation ahead of the 2021 legislative session.

The recent report from Teach Plus and Stand For Children Indiana says policymakers need to invest at least $535 million to make up for decreasing teacher pay over the past two decades.

The president of Indiana's largest teacher's union says they're waiting to see what lawmakers do before deciding whether to take more serious action.

Gov. Eric Holcomb wants to free up $140 million for schools over the next two years as a way to potentially boost teacher pay.

Gov. Eric Holcomb's budget includes a 2 percent funding increase for schools, per year of the biennium. It also cuts the state's Teacher Appreciation Grants, which provide bonus money to highly rated teachers.

House Bill 1003 would allow school districts to move just 15 percent of funding in their budgets away from "education" expenses - things like teacher pay - toward operation costs.

Gov. Eric Holcomb drew criticism last week after saying the teacher pay increase may need to wait until 2021.

ISTA President Teresa Meredith says Indiana teacher salaries aren't competitive, and teachers are leaving the state and the profession.

Ahead of the legislative session, Senate Democrats say their initial priorities are teacher pay, medical marijuana, pre-existing condition coverage and hate crimes.