Several government agencies have resisted the Department of Government Efficiency’s request for employees to submit a weekly report detailing their work accomplishments. The directive stems from President Donald Trump’s recent order tasking Elon Musk with leading a large-scale outreach effort to contact every federal employee across the United States.
Just hours after the email ultimatum – in which non-responders would reportedly be considered to have resigned – was sent, newly sworn in FBI Director Kash Patel issued guidance of his own.
“FBI personnel may have received an email from OPM requesting information. The FBI, through the Office of the Director, is in charge of all of our review processes and will conduct reviews in accordance with FBI procedures,” Mr. Patel wrote to staff. The agency will coordinate responses “when and if further information is required.” For now, FBI employees have been directed to “pause any responses.”
The State Department also instructed their employees to ignore the email, which came from the Office of Personnel Management. “No employee is obligated to report their activities outside of their Department chain of command,” read an email from Tibor Nagy, State’s Acting Undersecretary for Management.
The Pentagon, Department of Homeland Security, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have also told their employees not to respond.
Department of Justice staff, however, have been advised to “follow the instructions as requested,” according to an email sent on Saturday. However, the responses from DOJ employees must not include “any sensitive, confidential, or classified information.” Other agencies which have reportedly asked staff to comply include the Secret Service, and the Department of Transportation, among others.
Some agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service and the National Security Agency, have taken a “wait and see” approach, advising employees to hold off on responses until further guidance is received. According to Mr. Musk, those who do not respond by midnight on Monday will have effectively resigned.
As have previous DOGE initiatives, this move will very likely be challenged in court. The American Federation of Government Employees has already threatened to sue, calling the email “cruel and disrespectful.”
British Caribbean News