PITTSBURGH — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that Pittsburgh police officers may live outside the city limits.

The state’s highest court ruled unanimously Monday in favor of the police union, which argued the option would give officers choices in schools and housing.

Officers had been required to live in the city since 1902. City voters made the mandate a permanent part of Pittsburgh’s home rule charter a few years ago.

Mayor Bill Peduto said in a statement that residents “expressed overwhelming support for the residency requirement, and we want our police officers to continue to live in the neighborhoods and communities that they serve.”