A White House official said that Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of the social network X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, is officially working under President Donald Trump as a special civil servant. This means that the billionaire is not a volunteer, but he is also not a full-time federal employee, CNN reports.
Under U.S. federal law, the term "special government employee" is used to refer to an advisor, expert or consultant assigned to work with the federal government. Such persons are appointed or hired by the government to work for 130 days in any consecutive 365-day period.
At the same time, it is reported that Elon Musk does not receive a salary, although he has his own office in the White House.
In addition, an official with direct knowledge of the case told CNN that Musk also has a top-secret security clearance. Despite this, Donald Trump has previously stated that Elon Musk cannot and will not do anything without the president's approval.
As a special government employee, Musk is subject to the federal conflict of interest law. This prohibits the billionaire from participating in matters that could affect his own financial interests.
In addition, special public officials may be required to submit a financial disclosure report within 30 days of taking office.
According to this requirement, Elon Musk may be obliged to disclose financial information if he is paid more than GS-15 (from $125,133 to $162,672) as a civil servant. However, given the reports that he does not receive a salary, it is not clear whether the billionaire will be required to do so.