All county officers shall cause all legal notices and delinquent tax lists to be advertised in the official county newspaper designated by the county legislative authority.

At its first April meeting, the county legislative authority shall let a contract to a legal newspaper qualified under this section to serve as the official county newspaper for the term of one year beginning on the first day of July following. If there be at least one legal newspaper published in the county, the contract shall be let to a legal newspaper published in the county. If there be no legal newspaper published in the county, the county legislative authority shall let the contract to a legal newspaper published in an adjacent county and having general circulation in the county.

When two or more legal newspapers are qualified under the provisions of this section to be the official county newspaper, the clerk of the county legislative authority shall advertise, at least five weeks before the meeting at which the county legislative authority shall let the contract for the official county newspaper, for bid proposals to be submitted by interested qualified legal newspapers. Advertisement of the opportunity to bid shall be mailed to all qualified legal newspapers and shall be published once in the official county newspaper. The advertisement may designate the form which notices shall take, and may require that the successful bidder provide a bond for the correct and faithful performance of the contract.

The county legislative authority shall let the contract to the best and lowest responsible bidder, giving consideration to the question of circulation in awarding the contract, with a view to giving publication of notices the widest publicity.

The state auditor, with the aid and advice of the attorney general shall compile the forms for all public blanks used in the counties of this state in conformity with the general statutes thereof. The various blanks shall be uniform throughout the state.

The material used in such blank forms and the printing and binding thereof shall be provided for by the state in the same manner and under the same rules and regulations as other public printing is now provided for under the general statutes of this state.