Howard Fischer/Capitol Media Services

Gov. Doug Ducey arrives at press conference June 17, 2020, wearing a mask, the first time he has done that since declaring a state of emergency over COVID-19 since March.

The Arizona Supreme Court has ruled former Gov. Doug Ducey did not break any laws when he unilaterally ended the weekly $300 in unemployment benefits during the early pandemic.

The decision upholds a lower ruling that Ducey acted within his authority. 

The ruling did not address an argument from challengers that Ducey admitted he cut the program short, and denied those unemployed at the time the extra federal money with state participation.

He ended the program eight weeks before the federal aid finished.

Ducey claimed that cutting benefits back to the original $240 a week would motivate people to take open jobs, addressing the labor shortage.

When ending the extra weekly funds, he offered a $2,000 bonus to people who took a job by September 2021.