How does the Special Directive tile's 1 Thaler discount work, and does it count as an Action tile?

Question

Accepted Answer

Its 1 Thaler discount comes off the total cost of the single action you choose, once, not per coal; it can also cover paying another player's Turbine. The Special Directive does count as an Action tile for Contracts such as C06.

Nucleum

How does the Special Directive tile's 1 Thaler discount work, and does it count as an Action tile?