DALLAS – Farmers Branch, Texas, was rebuffed again in federal court when a judge put a temporary halt Friday to the city’s latest attempt to keep illegal immigrants from renting apartments in the city.

An ordinance was set to go into effect Saturday that would require prospective tenants to apply for a license and get confirmation from the federal government that they are citizens or legal immigrants. Landlords who rented to people without licenses would be penalized.

Last month, a federal judge struck down a similar ordinance as unconstitutional.

In granting a request for a temporary restraining order to keep the ordinance from going into effect, U.S. District Judge Jane Boyle ruled Friday that the ordinance’s opponents are likely to prevail at trial with their argument that, among other points, the city is overstepping its authority by enforcing areas of immigration law reserved for the federal government.

This can create a “slippery slope,” Boyle said. “The federal government’s authority over immigration would effectively be eviscerated,” Boyle said from the bench.

Farmers Branch Mayor Tim O’Hare listened said he was not surprised by the ruling.

“I think the judge is wrong,” he said. “I think the will of the people of Farmers Branch is not being carried out, and I think ultimately this matter will be resolved in the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Attorney Jim Renard, representing apartment owners and tenants opposed to the tenant-license plan, argued that this “unworkable” approach would unfairly cause apartment owners to lose business to nearby cities.

Friday’s ruling continues a nearly two-year dispute in Farmers Branch, a Dallas suburb where city officials have created a handful of measures to try to keep illegal immigrants from living there. The proposed laws have been met by lawsuits and protests.

Boyle did not set a date for the next hearing in the legal process.