TRENTON -- Gov. Chris Christie will approve a compromise that would put an end to the three-day state government shutdown and could reopen state parks and beaches in time for the Fourth of July, sources inside the governor's office said.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, sources confirmed Christie will approve the revised bill over control of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield that sparked a government shutdown.
State Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) and state Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-Hudson) have scheduled a 10 p.m. news conference to announce the deal. The two houses have been called back to Trenton for late night votes.
Christie has scheduled his own news conference for 10 p.m.
Ending the shutdown would reopen state parks and beaches that were closed Saturday under Christie's orders when lawmakers did not make the deadline for a new state budget.
It would also allow tens of thousands of furloughed state workers to return to work as everything from motor vehicles offices to the courts were shuttered.
Democratic lawmakers announced Monday, the third day of the shutdown, they were working on new legislation that may bring an end to the gridlock. The announcement came after closed-door meetings with the CEO of Horizon.
A deal to end the state shutdown could be near
Prieto, who had refused to go along with the earlier version of the Horizon bill, told reporters just after 3 p.m. he had instructed his staff to start drafting a new bill that would give the state more control over the state-created, nonprofit health insurer of 3.8 million people.
Christie has made the insurance company's restructuring a bargaining chip before he signs off on the state budget presented to him by the Democratically controlled Legislature.
Christie has ridiculed the $12 billion company for keeping $2.4 billion in reserve and for rebuffing his call for Horizon to donate $300 million to aid the state's efforts to combat the heroin and opioid drug addiction epidemic.
NJ Advance Media staff writers Brent Johnson and Susan K. Livio contributed to this report.
Matt Arco may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or on Facebook.