This paper addresses the role of experts in decision making in local government. Departing from theories about professionals and technocrats in decision making processes the question arises how much influence these experts have in policymaking processes. This paper addresses this question and discusses the role of western experts in adapting the social security system to EU requirements in a Polish community under the PHARE program. This is a critical case, because comparative figures show that local policymakers in East-European countries have a relatively large trust in experts and that, because of the money involved the Polish policymakers were heavily dependent on the experts. These facts result in the expectation that the experts’ advice would be humbly accepted. The case study shows, however, that many recommendations do not get a follow up. The degree to which that is the cases, seems to depend on the contents of the recommendations, the arrogance of the experts and the degree to which the recommendations are suited to the specific characteristics of the recipients situation.