Texas has filed a lawsuit against Fort Worth City Council Member Chris Nettles and his ministry, seeking nearly $800,000 in disallowed expenses tied to a federal program that once reimbursed his organization for feeding children at more than a dozen sites. The state says Purpose Driven Ministries owes $787,873 to the Texas Department of Agriculture, and the case now stands as the latest legal entanglement for a council member with a long history of courtroom and campaign drama.
State lawsuit filings reviewed by WBAP show the Office of the Attorney General filed “State of Texas v. Purpose Driven Ministries” in Travis County’s 353rd District Court on August 6, under Cause No. D-1-GN-26-004558, naming the ministry and identifying Nettles as a defendant. According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the state is seeking monetary relief of $1 million or less, excluding interest, attorney fees and other costs. The lawsuit does not specify exactly which expenses were disallowed, though the Texas Department of Agriculture referred the unpaid debt to the attorney general’s office for collection after Purpose Driven Ministries failed to pay amounts determined to be due, per the filing.
Nettles founded Purpose Driven Ministries in Fort Worth in 2010 and signed an agreement with the Texas Department of Agriculture in 2018 to participate in the federal Child and Adult Care Food Program, which reimburses organizations for the cost of nutritious meals and snacks served to children. The ministry operated the Haven of Purpose Child Care Center at 3000 Vaughn Blvd., which opened in 2018. The center was approved to provide meals at 14 sites during the 2020-2021 program period and expanded to 19 sites during the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 program years, providing meals to schools primarily in the Everman school district, the Star-Telegram reports.
A Center Already Shuttered
Haven of Purpose voluntarily suspended its permit in July 2024, reportedly to make repairs or possibly find a new location, according to the Star-Telegram’s reporting. The center ultimately closed in April, months before the state’s lawsuit was filed. Complicating matters further, a USDA database listed Nettles and Purpose Driven Ministries as barred from the Child and Adult Care Food Program and other USDA nutrition programs in 2023. Under federal regulations, individuals or institutional principals listed on the CACFP National Disqualified List following program termination or unresolved serious deficiencies are barred from participating in all federal child nutrition programs for seven years, according to the Federal Register…