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7 <br /> <br />Effect on taxes <br /> <br /> Proponents say: Because of expert character of <br />administration under the manager plan, the separation of <br />politics and administration, and the integration of the <br />administrative set-up, the cost of government will tend-to <br />be less under the manager plan than under other forms. <br /> <br /> Opponents reply: Figures do not show that the <br />manager plan saves money for the taxpayers. <br /> <br /> Proponents counter: It is impossible to compare <br />total costs because the very fact that government operates <br />efficiently may result in taxpayer pressure to perform more <br />municipal services. The important point is' that unit costs <br />will tend to be less, and the taxpayer tends to get more <br />for his tax dollar. <br /> <br />9. PERMANENCE OF IMPROVEMENT <br /> <br /> O~onents say: Benefits of the council-manager <br />plan are likely to be transitory. The initial enthusiasm' <br />will wear off and soon the standard of performance will <br />decline to its former level. <br /> <br /> Proponents reply: This is the danger that inheres <br />in any human endeavor. It is not related to the manager <br />plan as such. The corrective is not a change of structure <br />but a change in community attitudes. <br /> <br />III~ Conclusions <br /> <br /> There is nothing automatic about the council-manager <br />plan. The introduction of the new form in government is <br />not a patent medicine that cures all municipal ills. Too <br />often a community has been disappointed, because the <br />proponents of a plan have claimed too much for it. One <br />study has shown that the success of the plan depends in <br />large measure upon how far it is integrated with the social <br />attitudes and traditions of the community. The greatest <br />success has been achieved where cities have been truly <br />community-governed. There the councils have been of high <br />quality and the council-manager relations have been <br />cooperative. In cities that have been ridden by political <br />factions or machines the municipal administration has been <br />strengthened but not so much as in the community-governed <br />cities. This is largely because political amateurs have <br />been instrumental in introducing the manager plan in order <br />to get rid of inefficiency and waste. After initial <br /> <br />-27- <br /> <br /> <br />