"Failure to respond a second time will result in termination," Musk wrote on X, doubling down on an initial directive requiring employees to submit five completed tasks from the prior week. The mandate, issued Saturday, set a deadline of 11:59 p.m. Monday for responses, initially stating that noncompliance would be considered resignation.

However, OPM pushed back against the directive, notifying agency leaders Monday afternoon that employee participation was not mandatory. 

"OPM also clarified that a non-response to the email does not equate to a resignation," read an agency email obtained by The Hill.

The directive, reportedly sent at Musk's behest, ignited a dispute between agency leaders and the billionaire as federal departments scrambled to address confusion. Several agencies, including the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, advised employees not to respond to the email.

FBI Director Kash Patel instructed staff Saturday to "pause any responses," noting that the agency would coordinate replies if necessary. "The FBI, through the Office of the Director, is in charge of our review processes and will conduct reviews," Patel said in a staff message.

DHS leadership echoed this stance, directing its 250,000-plus employees to disregard the request. Internal documents acknowledged concerns that employees might not recognize their participation was voluntary.

President Donald Trump, however, defended Musk's directive.

"There was a lot of genius in sending it," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday. "We're trying to find out if people are working, and so we're sending a letter to people, 'Please tell us what you did last week.' If people don't respond, it's very possible that there is no such person or they're not working."

The debate over Musk's authority to enforce such directives has drawn legal scrutiny.