It's hard to imagine that with dozens of low-income people forced to live on our beaches, state aid designed to prevent homelessness fails to reach those who need it most.

That's precisely why the state's Rent Supplement Program must be changed.

In the last two years, more than $1 million has been allocated from the state budget to the program, but at least half of that — about $500,000 — has been returned unused to the general fund.

The program is hampered by outdated and inflexible rules that create a Catch-22 situation, with tragic results.

To qualify for the state's supplemental aid, one has to be a renter in the state public housing system. The troubled system has been under fire from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for not being able to maintain its units, and for being unable to keep up with a growing demand for affordable rentals. As a result, the state's waiting list for a housing unit has nearly 16,000 people on it and is growing.

If you get on that list and are lucky enough to get a unit but need rent subsidy, you must then go on another waiting list, which has a backlog of 800 names. After all that, the amount of assistance is just $160 a month, an amount that was set by the Legislature in 1988. That might have been enough then, but it's painfully insufficient to offset the cost of 2006 rents.

Patti Miyamoto, the interim director at the Hawai'i Public Housing Authority, admits the amount needs to be higher and the program changed.

Last session, a measure to increase the monthly aid to just under $240 a month never made it to the massive Housing Omnibus Bill. Let's hope the Legislature can fix that this time around.

That omnibus bill contained millions of dollars directed at the building of homes, some of them affordable, and shelters. Indeed, these are all important components in a comprehensive solution. But perhaps none has a more immediate impact than a simple and aggressive rental subsidy program.

Legislators should also examine making rent subsides available to low-income residents who are not in the public housing system but are precariously close to homelessness.

Making sure our residents get the funds set aside to help them stay afloat is crucial to addressing homelessness. And it will go a long way toward making sure they have options other than the closest beach.