Spouses of active-duty service members and overseas foreign service officers are exempt from return to the office mandates, OPM said.

The new memo clarifies a footnote in a Jan. 27 Office of Management and Budget announcement that said agencies should "exclude military spouses working remotely based on the Military Spouse Employment Act.

Military families sought exemption from the directive as the blunt exercise of power proved uniquely disruptive for federal workers married to service members.