Fort Worth City Council Member Chris Nettles was sued by the state last month after his ministry allegedly misused nearly $800,000 from a federal food program for children.
The lawsuit, filed on Aug. 6 in Travis County, claims the Texas Department of Agriculture — which manages the state's federal food program funds — is demanding Purpose Driven Ministries to return “disallowed expenses” and additional interest.
The lawsuit does not specify what the disallowed expenses were, but the contract between the ministry and department lays out what program money can’t be spent on.
The ministry can only request reimbursement for “reduced-price and paid meals served to eligible children,” according to the contract. The department is allowed to recover any money given for inaccurate reimbursement claims.
It states that some expenses require “specific prior written approval” from the Food and Nutrition Service Regional Office. Those expenses include labor costs, insurance, legal expenses and facility costs.
Reimbursement money can also not be used to buy land or buildings.
The program’s handbook also states a meal could become disallowed if it’s taken home and eaten instead of at a cafeteria, or even if it’s given out at an unapproved time of day.
KERA News reached out to Nettle, the ministry and the agriculture department and will update this story with any response.
The money was distributed through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Child and Adult Care Food Program and managed by the state’s agriculture department.
The program covers some of the costs of more than 400,000 meals and snacks served in Texas everyday.
Nettles founded Purpose Driven Ministries in 2010 and first applied for the food program in 2018, according to court records. The ministry provides an after school child care program that gives students free meals and teaches “social and sensory skills,” according to the group’s website.
Nettles was elected to represent District 8, which covers part of south Fort Worth, in 2021.
The ministry served 19 schools and received over $1.3 million in federal funding in the 2021-2022 school year before its contract was ended.
Purpose Driven Ministries’ contract with the department was canceled during an audit of the group’s 2022 expenses, according to court documents. The ministry appealed the decision at an administrative hearing, but it was denied.
Nettles and two other board members were barred from using the Child and Adult Care Food Program in the future.
The agriculture department afterward demanded the ministry pay back nearly $800,000 in expenses. When the ministry didn’t, the department referred the debt to the Attorney General’s Office, according to the lawsuit.
Dylan Duke is KERA's breaking news reporter. Got a tip? Email Dylan at dduke@kera.org.
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