Tomball-based cafe Honor Society Coffee Co. has announced plans to open a second location in the Spring area.

The details: Owned by John and Joni Shaw, the new location will serve the Spring and Klein communities according to business officials. Per the website, the company provides a variety of iced and hot coffees and teas.

On the menu: Honor Society Coffee Co. also supplies its own beans for coffees made in house. Some of the speciality lattes offered by the shop include:

• Salty Texan: two shots of espresso, salted caramel, white chocolate, steamed milk, and topped with salt and cinnamon.

• Pretty in Pink: pureed strawberry and coconut milk, topped with sweet foam, and drizzled with strawberry sauce.

• Basic Blonde: white chocolate dirty chai topped with cold foam and cinnamon.

Local Chinese restaurant Oriental Garden recently wrapped up light interior remodeling, and added a private dining room, staff confirmed.

The details: Offering delivery, takeout and dine-in options, Oriental Garden serves Kung Pao chicken, Szechuan shrimp and other authentic Chinese cuisine according to their website. Staff confirmed ownership of Oriental Garden has not recently changed.

• 16734 Champion Forest Drive, Spring

The Margaritaville Beach Cottage Resort in Galveston is continuing development, with the construction of a model cottage unit designed to give prospective buyers an early on-site experience by the summer, according to an April 22 news release from RREAF Holdings.

The details: Full construction of the resort is expected to be completed in July 2027, according to a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, or TDLR, listing.

• 401 E. Beach Drive, Galveston

As health care costs continue rising in Texas and across the nation, state lawmakers are working to understand the factors that make health care unaffordable and what can be done to rein in prices.

The big picture: About 5.2 million Texans, or 16.7% of the state’s population, did not have health insurance in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

For years, advocates have called on Texas lawmakers to pass laws to drive down health care costs and improve access to health insurance. During a two-day hearing April 30 and May 1, a Texas House committee examined why health care costs are rising. Lawmakers will discuss potential policy solutions later this year, committee chair Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls, said.

What's happening: Yale University professor Zack Cooper said that since 2000, U.S. health care spending has grown three times faster than inflation. The average health insurance premium for a family of four is $27,000 per year, he said.

“Every family is basically buying a new Toyota Corolla worth of health insurance," Cooper told lawmakers.