The Charter of the French language and its regulations govern the consultation of English language content.
Since January 2002, the new City is confronted with a different day-to-day reality. With the merging of rural municipalities facing traditional urban concerns, the City must now deal with rural issues. This mix of producers and manufacturers should create a true "powerhouse" that will benefit the whole Maskoutain community.
Saint-Hyacinthe is home to numerous institutions including: the Palais de Justice (Court House); the Réseau Santé Richelieu-Yamaska; the headquarters of the central region of the Caisses Desjardins du Québec and the Fédération Richelieu-Yamaska des Caisses populaires as well as two insurance companies, La Survivance and Intact.
In terms of education, nearly 15,000 students attend the numerous public and private institutions at the elementary and secondary school levels.
As for higher education and research centres, Saint-Hyacinthe is home to the Faculté de Médecine Vétérinaire de l'Université de Montréal (the only francophone veterinary school in North America), the local CEGEP, the Institut de technologie agroalimentaire (ITA), and the École professionnelle de Saint-Hyacinthe (a vocational school). The research sector is thriving and relies on pillars such as the Centre de recherche et de développement sur les aliments (CRDA), the Institut de biotechnologie vétérinaire et alimentaire (IBVA) and the Centre d'insémination artificielle du Québec (CIAQ), where the first animal cloning in Canada was successfully performed in 2000.
On the information front, Saint-Hyacinthe and its region are served by two weekly newspapers: the Courrier de Saint-Hyacinthe (established in 1853 and the oldest weekly French newspaper in North America) and the Clairon régional(since 1912). The City also boasts a radio station (BOOM FM 106,5) and a local television station (TVCOGECO).