FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — More than 20,000 immigrant truck drivers in California will be able to keep their licenses for now, after a tentative ruling on Wednesday in Alameda County Superior Court.

The decision comes amid a tug-of-war between the state and the federal government.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has repeatedly pushed the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to revoke licenses belonging to asylum seekers and other immigrants with temporary legal status, pointing to clerical issues with expiration dates.

Last fall, the DMV sent letters to more than 20,000 drivers notifying them their licenses would expire within 60 days.

However, after a lawsuit filed by a law firm and two advocacy groups, the Asian Law Caucus and the Sikh Coalition, challenged the process, the state extended the expiration dates to March 6.

[RELATED] Federal crackdown targets more than 550 trucking schools, including two in Fresno

The federal government has warned it could withhold $160 million in highway funds from California if the extension stands.

“Keeping these licenses intact will risk the ultimate harm that California is trying to avoid,” said Barbara Horne-Petersdorf, an attorney with the California Department of Justice.

About 700,000 drivers in California hold commercial licenses, required for everything from big rigs to school buses.

The judge is expected to issue a final ruling soon.

Attorneys for the state will also outline how the DMV can give drivers a chance to keep their licenses while complying with federal demands.

Even with the temporary relief, the long-term outlook for these drivers remains uncertain.

A new federal rule could prevent states from issuing or renewing licenses for many of the drivers affected.

Unions, including the AFL-CIO and the American Federation of Teachers, along with the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, have filed a lawsuit to block the rule.

California has also sued the Transportation Department over threats to withhold funding and revoke the state’s ability to grant commercial licenses.

Alejandro, a Bay Area truck driver and asylum seeker, said the ruling is a lifeline.

He asked that his last name be withheld for safety reasons.

Over the past three years, he said he has invested more than $70,000 in his trucking business.

“If I can’t maintain my license, I can’t continue operating my business,” he said. Under the tentative ruling, he can keep his license through its original expiration in December.

Many affected drivers belong to the Sikh community, a religious minority from India.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit include school bus drivers and commercial truck drivers whose licenses were set to expire as late as 2027.

Driver shortages are already affecting supply chains, according to Gunveer Singh, a California-based freight broker.

“The cost of a single freight trip from New Jersey to Texas has gone up by more than 35% because of a national shortage of immigrant drivers,” he said. “We just can’t find drivers. It’s a whole thing.”