Labour has pledged to repeal the Disability Support Services Bill if it wins the next election, following the delivery of a 16,458-signature petition to Parliament on Thursday.
The petition, organised by New Plymouth mother and disability carer Victoria Coleman, gathered signatures in five weeks opposing the legislation currently before select committee.
Labour disability issues spokesperson Priyanca Radhakrishnan announced the commitment at Parliament, saying "disability communities have long fought for self-determination through the principle of 'nothing about us without us', and it is hugely disappointing to see the government do the exact opposite again".
Radhakrishnan said the bill could lock disabled people into unsafe arrangements by ignoring abusive situations, and gives the minister extensive powers to reduce disability support without adequate safeguards.
ACT disability spokesperson Laura McClure said she had heard concerns about whether future administrations could use secondary legislation to impose greater requirements on families, describing this as something the select committee should review.
Disability minister Louise Upston defended the bill, saying it "doesn't change any entitlement, any allocation, doesn't change anything like means testing, and it's really concerning that there's a significant amount of misinformation out there about what the bill actually does".
Upston said the legislation establishes foundational rules where currently none exist, adding "for the first time ever, we have taken into consideration the needs of family and carers".