Independents for Canberra want to see a dramatic reduction in the public housing waiting list and have committed to using any leverage in the Legislative Assembly to secure significant funding increases for the sector.
Thomas Emerson, the party's leader, said voters in every territory electorate wanted to see urgent action on housing and homelessness.
"How can it be that the most progressive government in the country has completely failed to house so many of the most vulnerable members of our community?" Mr Emerson said.
"Twelve years under the Labor-Greens coalition has seen a reduction in public housing stock of almost 9 per cent despite population growth of 30 per cent."
Riley Fernandes, who is running with Independents for Canberra in Brindabella, said she had been on the public housing waitlist since September 2022.
"It's been a bumpy ride. I'm now in a private rental that my friend was open to sharing with me and my 18-month-old daughter," Ms Fernandes said.
"There isn't a single rental property in Canberra that I could afford on my own."
The party, which was established as an umbrella group for community independents, said its candidates had committed to a policy in favour of cutting the priority housing wait list to 30 days and the high needs list to 90 days.
The party wants to "ensure the ACT ranks first in Australia in terms of public housing dwelling condition".
"The group expects significant additional capital and recurrent expenditure to be required to build and maintain the housing stock needed to achieve these targets," the party said.
Independents for Canberra did not say about how much extra funding would be required to achieve the wait list reductions and housing stock condition improvements.
The party last month committed its candidates to backing increased funding for the community sector to return per capita funding to inflation-adjusted 2010 levels.
Community sector funding should be tied to population growth plus inflation, the party said.
"Critical service providers in the ACT's community sector are reporting that significant funding gaps have emerged since 2010 due to increased demand coupled with population growth of 30 per cent not having been met by substantial funding increases," the party said.
"Some service providers have been forced to cut back on services due to issues with the cost of service delivery and staff retention."
