Government/Policy
November 25, 2025
Trump makes golden share appointments to U.S. Steel
Written by Laura Miller
President Donald Trump has officially invoked his “golden share” in U.S. Steel, making two related appointments.
The president informed U.S. Steel in a Nov. 20 letter published in the Federal Register, the US government’s daily journal.
He named William Kimmitt, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, as his designee. Kimmitt will have consent rights on specific matters, including reductions in committed capital investments, the transfer of production outside the US, and the closure or idling of U.S. Steel’s facilities.
He also exercised his right as the golden shareholder to appoint and elect one independent USS director. He appointed David Shapiro, chief counsel of the US Department of Commerce’s Investment Accelerator, to sit on the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker’s board of directors.
The Class G “golden share” in U.S. Steel was issued earlier this year after it entered into a national security agreement (NSA) with the company and its parent, Nippon Steel. The agreement named Trump specifically as the holder of the golden share for as long as he is president. After that, the role transfers to the US Treasury and Commerce Departments.
“The United States Government must closely monitor U.S. Steel and its compliance with the Agreement,” Trump stated in the letter. “Unless I direct otherwise, these designations shall last for as long as Under Secretary Kimmitt and Mr. Shapiro are employees of the United States Government.”
The Trump administration has already exercised its Class G share, successfully pressuring U.S. Steel in September to maintain output at its Granite City Works.
