Michael Stefanak

Director, Marine Protection
Former Assistant Chief, California Fish and Wildlife Service

“Mike” is a California native with more than 45 years of hunting and fishing experience in North America. In 1992 he started his career with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Law Enforcement Division. For more than 29 years, he worked diligently to protect and conserve the vast and diverse natural resources of the state.

Over his tenure, Mike performed a range of duties, from patrol and emergency response to conducting inspections to assure compliance, developing permitting recommendations, issuing warnings and violations, conducting investigations, serving in judicial proceedings, and organizing and undertaking both routine and special operations, often in coordination with partner agencies. He has extensive experience with and a deep appreciation for complex natural resource issues, competing interests, and the importance of working with stakeholders, having served in various physical environments, including the state’s inland deserts, downtown Los Angeles, the mountains of the Eastern Sierra, and westward to the outer waters of the Pacific coast.

Mike recently retired as the Assistant Chief of the Marine Enforcement District, where at the apex of his career he spent four years building a team of 80 specialized sworn officers dedicated to enforcing complex state and federal marine fisheries laws. He strengthened partnerships and citizen-science efforts to aid enforcement and to educate the public about California’s statewide Marine Protected Area network. He also commissioned a state-of-the-art offshore patrol vessel and supported strategic enforcement operations aimed at assuring compliance and bringing violators to justice, with a focus on Marine Protected Area enforcement efforts.

Mike is a people person, affable by nature, and the oldest of four siblings, who deeply values the importance of mentorship, preparedness, and training. His personal philosophy is deeply rooted in respect for the laws he was sworn to uphold and protect, having been raised in a multi-generational family of federal, state, and municipal law enforcement officers.