Disability Market Transparency
Australia's NDIS serves 799,450 participants, but where are the thin markets where plans can't be used, which communities have no providers, and how does disability funding connect to justice, procurement, and community-controlled organisations?
Thin Market Analysis
Where NDIS participants have no providers
| Status | LGAs | Participants | Providers | Desert Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CRITICAL | 507 | 748,532 | 0 | — |
| ADEQUATE | 18 | 50,918 | 3,388 | 83 |
| NO_DATA | 1,111 | 0 | 180,877 | 84 |
Cross-System Overlap
NDIS providers in other systems
These are NDIS registered providers who also appear in federal procurement, justice funding, or ALMA evidence databases — revealing how disability services connect to broader government spending.
Disability Deserts
LGAs with 100+ participants but critical/severe provider gaps
| LGA | State | Remoteness | Participants | Providers | Status | Desert |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murweh (S) | QLD | 156 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Liverpool (C) | NSW | 6,954 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Gunnedah (A) | NSW | 372 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Cassowary Coast (R) | QLD | 736 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Lachlan (A) | NSW | 152 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Perth (C) | WA | 370 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| West Coast (M) | TAS | 101 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Renmark Paringa (DC) | SA | 294 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Latrobe (M) (Tas.) | TAS | 305 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Hawkesbury (C) | NSW | 1,999 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Temora (A) | NSW | 158 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Brisbane (C) | QLD | 29,711 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Unley (C) | SA | 840 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Eurobodalla (A) | NSW | 1,141 | 0 | CRITICAL | — | |
| Ararat (RC) | VIC | 424 | 0 | CRITICAL | — |
First Nations
NDIS participants by remoteness
QLD First Nations NDIS data — Dec 2025
| Remoteness | Participants | Avg Budget |
|---|---|---|
| Inner Regional | 5,311 | $100K |
| Major Cities | 7,995 | $78K |
| MMM6 & 7 | 1,289 | $88K |
| Outer Regional | 758 | $60K |
| Remote | 1,003 | $80K |
| Very Remote | 1,552 | $72K |
Very Remote First Nations participants receive 28% less in average plan budgets than Inner Regional, despite higher service delivery costs and fewer providers.
Plan Utilisation
How much of allocated funding is used
Lower utilisation = thinner market = plans can't be spent
| State | Avg Utilisation | Min District | Max District |
|---|---|---|---|
| State_Missing | 34% | 14% | 53% |
| NT | 71% | 52% | 91% |
| WA | 72% | 46% | 89% |
| SA | 73% | 52% | 92% |
| TAS | 75% | 63% | 88% |
| VIC | 76% | 47% | 91% |
| QLD | 76% | 54% | 90% |
| ACT | 77% | 66% | 90% |
| NSW | 78% | 60% | 91% |
Nationally, ~30% of allocated NDIS plan budgets go unused. In thin markets, participants are allocated support they cannot access because no providers exist nearby. This is the invisible cost of market failure.
National View
First Nations NDIS by state
| State | Total FN Participants | Very Remote | Avg Budget | VR Budget | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | 21,666 | 2,392 | $73K | $60K | -18% |
| QLD | 17,908 | 1,552 | $84K | $72K | -14% |
| VIC | 7,695 | 600 | $72K | $58K | -19% |
| WA | 5,512 | 199 | $124K | $71K | -43% |
| SA | 4,595 | 401 | $93K | $67K | -28% |
| NT | 3,570 | 26 | $177K | $84K | -53% |
| TAS | 1,782 | 295 | $76K | $59K | -22% |
| ACT | 649 | <11 | $74K | — | — |
| MIS | — | <11 | — | — | — |
| OT | — | <11 | — | — | — |
Counter-AI
When algorithms decide disability plans, who watches the algorithm?
From mid-2026, NDIS participant plans will be generated by an algorithmic “budget model engine.” CivicGraph builds the transparency layer: cross-referencing algorithmic budget outputs against actual support needs, geographic access, and market capacity. This report is powered by 26,737 linked NDIS providers across 6 government systems — the kind of cross-system visibility no single department currently has.
Market Power
NDIS Market Concentration
Where the top 10 providers capture outsized payment shares.
Funding Deserts
Full Desert Analysis
Now includes NDIS thin market penalty in desert scoring.
Network View
Visualize Connections
Force-directed graph showing how disability providers connect to justice, procurement, and evidence.