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St. Louis Police Chief hopeful after residency law change

St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden is optimistic that the removal of the residency requirement for his department will help fill several vacancies -- perhaps leading to a net increase of about 100 officers over the next year. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the department is authorized to have 1,349 officers but is currently 129 officers short. On Monday, Gov. Mike Parson signed a law repealing the long-standing residency requirement. Hayden said Tuesday during a Public Safety Committee meeting that he is hopeful the change will lead to double the number of applicants for city police officer jobs.