Using research conducted by the federal government's own finance department, social policy groups released the report, "Paying for Canada: Perspectives on Public Finance and National Programs." It showed that deliberate government policy to reduce taxation levels for some of the most economically advantaged groups in Canada had resulted in a significant decrease in public revenues, thereby fuelling a debt "crisis". With five Canadian provinces going to the polls in 2011 and another recession looming, it is important to understand the critical role of stable taxation levels in supporting this country's success in education. As several writers have pointed out in this issue, Canada's educational outcomes are much better than those of the U.S.--and the impact of socio-economic status on those outcomes much lower--for a combination of reasons: lower levels of inequality and child and family poverty, higher wages, better support for immigrants, better housing and health care, equitable financing policies, better qualified and motivated teachers, and less variation in quality of schools. (Contains 5 footnotes.)