The council of each city for which a sealer has been appointed as provided for by N.H. Rev. Stat. § 438:16 shall: (1) procure at the expense of the city such standards of weight and measure and such additional equipment, to be used for the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter in said city, as may be prescribed by the commissioner, (2) provide a suitable office for the sealer, and (3) provide for the necessary clerical services, supplies, and transportation, and for defraying contingent expenses incident to the official activities of the sealer in carrying out the provisions of this chapter. When the standards of weight and measure required by this section to be provided by a city have been examined and approved by the commissioner, they shall be the official standards for such city. It shall be the duty of the sealer to make, or to arrange to have made, at least as frequently as once a year, comparisons between his field standards and appropriate standards of a higher order belonging to his city or to the state, in order to maintain such field standards in accurate condition. Whenever the city council of a city shall neglect for 6 months to provide such standards, the city clerk of said city, on notification and request by the commissioner, shall provide the same and cause them to be tried, sealed, and deposited at the expense of the city.