SpaceX continues to expand its footprint in Bastrop County.

The details: The facility at 858 FM 1209 in Bastrop will add an 157,321-square-foot parking garage—an estimated $20 million in upgrades, according to a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

Some context: In March, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced that a $17.3 million grant awarded to SpaceX through the Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund would assist with a project that would add approximately 1 million square space to the site.

Bastrop Prayer and Healing Rooms marked the official opening of its new space in Bastrop during a ribbon-cutting ceremony in mid-June.

The details: The nonprofit organization—which offers prayer and healing rooms, food boxes for those in need, and morning and evening services each month—was developed around focused and personalized prayer and healing, offers 

The prayer and healing rooms are now open from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month, and from 10 a.m. to noon on the third Thursday of each month outside of Celebration Community Church, according to Bastrop Prayer and Healing Rooms.

Central Texas dentists have been feeling the effects of a nationwide shortage of dental hygienists, facing difficulties filling vacant positions to serve a growing number of patients

Zooming out: A 2019 study by the Texas Department of State Health Services projected that the demand for dental hygienists would outpace supply from 2018 to 2030. In Central Texas, the shortage of dental hygienists was projected to increase by 116.4% from 2018 to 2030, according to the report.

What they're saying: “As the population increases, new patients are coming into practices in Austin,” said Dr. Shailee Gupta, local dentist and member of Capital Area Dental Society. “Without the proper number of hygienists to go with these practices or community centers, there's no way to be able to meet that demand.”

The approach: To help counteract this shortage, Austin Community College opened an expanded dental hygiene clinic at its Eastview Campus this fall, nearly doubling the program’s annual cohort of students from 18 to 34. 

Texas health officials are proposing sweeping new regulations on the state’s hemp industry, including raising the fees required to sell and manufacture consumable hemp products by roughly 10,000%.

The overview: In late December, the Texas Department of State Health Services published a slate of proposed rules regulating consumable hemp products. The proposals include:

• A prohibition on sales to customers under 21 years old
• Stricter testing and labeling requirements
• Guidelines for product recalls
• Tens of thousands of dollars in annual fees