Expression Manager does not depend upon user rights. You can run any survey that happens to include Expression Manager-based branching / tailoring / validation without needing to be logged in.
However, the EM button that lets you access the list of available functions, unit tests, and administrative tools (like bulk converting conditions to relevance) does test user permissions. Is that the problem people are running into? If so, we could adjust permissions accordingly (e.g. anyone who can author an instrument can see the list of functions and unit tests; but only administrators can do the bulk conversions).