James Binniker

James is the Director of NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement, where he is responsible for ensuring compliance with federal laws and regulations covering more than 3 million square miles of ocean. He manages partnership agreements with dozens of states and federal territories to increase compliance with federal rules and regulations. He manages law enforcement personnel and support staff in field offices all along the U.S. coast, as well as Alaska and Hawaii. 

Prior to this role, he served as the acting Director for the Office and as Assistant Director when he joined NOAA in December 2022. During his time as Assistant Director, he led a team of foreign affairs specialists, investigative analysts, and special agents. They developed policy and strategic plans to address illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing, foreign partner capacity building, and support to field personnel conducting enforcement operations.

Before joining NOAA, James served for 26 years in the U.S. Coast Guard. He engaged in law enforcement, search and rescue, environmental pollution response, and maritime security operations on multiple ships and shore-based commands. His last assignment was as the Chief of the Fisheries Enforcement Division. He oversaw the strategic direction and performance measurement for Coast Guard units conducting domestic fisheries enforcement, marine resource protection, and counter-IUU fishing operations.

He holds a Master degree in Marine Affairs from University of Rhode Island and a Certificate in Criminal Investigator Training from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. He also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from Christopher Newport University.