Arizona is officially Buc-ee's country after the Texas-based — and Texas-sized — travel center chain opened its first Arizona location in Goodyear yesterday.

The big picture: Buc-ee's now has 56 locations across the U.S.

• Offerings at the travel centers range from the snacks and drinks you'd expect at any convenience store to fresh-made food and treats — they're famous for their brisket — along with clothing, toys and home decor.
• There's also a plethora of gear featuring the company's iconic Buc-ee the Beaver mascot.

State of play: The new location, at Bullard Avenue and Interstate 10, opened its doors at 6am yesterday boasting 74,000 square feet inside and 120 fueling stations outside.

• By the time I arrived around 5:30am, hundreds of people waited in multiple lines, some wearing Buc-ee's gear, including the occasional beaver adult onesie.

Several people I spoke with were well-seasoned Buc-ee's fans excited to be part of the grand opening.

• "It's an experience. It's like going to Disney in the morning when they open up the gates," joked Diana Gutierrez, 74, of Whittier, California, who came to Goodyear with her son for the opening

Others experienced Buc-ee's for the first time yesterday,

• Khyle Martin of Surprise said it "absolutely" lived up to the hype.
• "I got Beaver Nuggets. I got a brisket taco. I'm just grabbing everything," said Martin, who wore a beaver onesie he bought at the store.

17-year-old Ace Tsaturian, an Armenian who recently moved to Peoria from Moscow, said he'd never seen anything so "good and beautiful" at a gas station.

• He told Axios he'd never heard of Buc-ee's, but a friend told him about the event and he decided, "I have to go here because America is a great culture. ... And I wanted to see how great it is."

Yesterday was my first Buc-ee's experience, too.

• Thanks to the power of branding, my 6-year-old already knew who Buc-ee Beaver was, so I went in with a request for a keychain and t-shirt.

Meet Buc-ee

A lot's been made about the tax cuts in the freshly signed state budget — but they came at the cost of government programs that quietly lost funding in the final deal.

Why it matters: Education and workforce initiatives were among the hardest hit, which advocates warned would have long-term impacts on the state.

Zoom in: The programs that lost funding include:

💰Arizona Promise ($16.3 million): A scholarship program for Arizona high school graduates.

📚 Adult Education Workforce Program ($6 million): Support for community college offerings that prepare Arizonans age 21 and older for the workforce.

🎓 Adult workforce diploma program ($2 million): Created last year to allow Arizonans age 21 and older to earn high school diplomas and develop career and technical skills.

🎒 Dual enrollment incentives ($1.5 million): Designed to encourage more schools to offer dual-enrollment courses.

🧑‍🎓Ninth Grade On‑Track Initiative ($3.4 million): An initiative to help Arizona schools better prepare high school freshmen to encourage graduation.

👀 Federal officials are looking to nearly triple the capacity of a former Marana prison that's slated to become an immigration detention facility. (Arizona Luminaria)

🗓️ A time capsule from 1985 was discovered during remodeling at Glendale City Hall. (KJZZ)

🏀 Colin Gillespie is expected to sign a four-year, $48 million contract with the Suns. (Arizona Sports)

🤝 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Amkor Technology finalized a 10-year partnership for advanced packaging and test services. (Phoenix Business Journal)

We hope you haven't used up all your Valley pride because we have yet another unofficial civic holiday to celebrate this month.

State of play: It's 623 Day in downtown Glendale, the second annual event honoring the west side area code.

How it works: Locals are encouraged to stop into downtown businesses for $6.23 specials and special merchandise.

• See all participating locations here.

If you go: The deals and festivities continue throughout the week.