Earl M. Sweeney is the appointed Assistant Commissioner of Safety. The Assistant Commissioner is appointed by the Governor, upon nomination by the Commissioner, to serve a term of four years. He is second-in-command of the Department and also has several specific responsibilities. Reporting directly to the Assistant Commissioner are the Bureau of Hearings; the Litigation Office; the Prosecutor’s Office; and the Divisions of Safety Services; Fire Standards and Training and Emergency Medical Services; the Division of Fire Safety, and the Division of Emergency Services, Communications and Management. Assistant Commissioner Sweeney served as Police Chief in the Town of Belmont, NH from 1961-75; as Assistant to the Director of Motor Vehicles from 1975-76; as Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Safety from 1976-85; and as Director of the Police Standards and Training Council from 1985-2003 prior to returning to the Department of Safety. The current term for Assistant Commissioner Sweeney runs through March, 2011