Goondiwindi Regional Council was formed in 2008 by the amalgamation of Goondiwindi town, Inglewood Shire and Waggamba Shire. The new council area's southern boundary is the New South Wales border and extends for about 250 km westwards, from near the Pike Creek reservoir almost to Mungindi. Its north-south extent reaches from just short of Moonie to Goondiwindi, about 90 km.
The western two-thirds of the council's area was the former Waggamba Shire. It surrounded Goondiwindi and was headquartered there. Its few small towns are on the railway running from Warwick to Inglewood and Goondiwindi (1908) and on to Dirranbandi. The railway came rather late to the region, as Goondiwindi had been a border customs town (1859) and a municipal council (1888). There was also a branch line (1930-85) from Inglewood to Texas, near the southern border of Inglewood shire. The constituent municipalities' contributions to the new regional council were:
| Area (sq km) | Population (2006) | |
|---|---|---|
| Goondiwindi Town | 15 | 4713 |
| Inglewood Shire | 5859 | 2533 |
| Waggamba Shire | 13,400 | 2871 |
| Totals | 19,284 | 10,117 |
Goondiwindi is the Regional Council's business centre. Other towns include Inglewood, Texas and Yelarbon. Sheep, beef cattle and grain farming are all significant contributors to the economy. Irrigation from the MacIntyre Brook and Dumaresq River holds out prospects for increased cropping, and there are forest and mineral reserves.
Goondiwindi Regional Council's census populations have been:
| census date | population |
|---|---|
| 2011 | 10,628 |
Goondiwindi, Inglewood Shire and Waggamba Shire entries
