INDIANAPOLIS - The debate over whether Indiana should put civil rights for lesbian, gay and transgendered people into state law is destined to be a major issue when the Legislature meets in January.

But GOP leaders who control the Statehouse say they have other plans, too.
    
They want to find a long-term way to pay for building and maintaining roads and bridges. A shortage of teachers in the state should also be addressed.
    
And lawmakers also want to spare teachers from having their pay docked this year due to low ISTEP test scores in the wake of the new, difficult post-Common Core test standards.
    
Democrats say a bitter and high-profile debate over LGBT rights could derail those plans.