New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie ordered the first state government shutdown in over a decade Friday night as he and Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto remained deadlocked in budget negotiations, fighting over a plan to overhaul the state's largest health insurer.

Christie's executive order, declaring a state of emergency, closes non-essential services around the state.



While lawmakers work toward an agreement in Trenton, people across New Jersey - and everywhere else - will be locked out of state parks and beaches.

From NJ.com:

The closings come just in time for the July 4 holiday weekend. And if the stalemate lasts through Tuesday, it will include Independence Day itself.

Christie's office said all events within the parks and sites will be canceled. But Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop said a major July 4 celebration scheduled for Liberty State Park featuring a concert by Kool & The Gang will be held

People who were camping overnight will be asked to leave Saturday morning by park police.

Municipal parks and beaches will remain open. And the shutdown would also not affect most local July 4 fireworks displays.

The list of what's closed includes includes the two state beaches -- Cheesequake and Island Beach -- and Liberty State Park in Jersey City. Also closed are Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, Princeton Battlefield State Park, Cape May Point State Park and Corson's Inlet State Park in Ocean City. Here's the full list of closed beaches and parks.

Christie -- whose family planned to stay at Island Beach State Park -- suggested earlier in the day that he was ready to call the 120-member Legislature back to Trenton this weekend.

"If my weekend's going to be ruined and the people of New Jersey's weekend is going to be impacted, you can bet for sure that I'm not giving 120 other people the weekend off," Christie said.