See the thread below. You might want to double check if the change applies this year or is pushed back to 2024-25.
Also, see article in WSJ from Dec 21, 2023 „Congress’s College Financial Aid Fiasco The revised student aid form means middle-class parents will pay more.“
and specifically the following:
„ Parents who are sole proprietors might have to borrow against their business assets to pay tuition. But there’s a loophole: Families with less than $60,000 in income or with one member who has received a federal means-tested benefit in the last two years won’t have to report assets. This is an inducement for every college student to sign up for Medicaid.
Under the Education Department’s draft FAFSA, free and reduced school lunches also qualify as a means-tested benefit. But progressive governments such as California and New York City have made free lunches available to students regardless of income. All California parents of public school children thus wouldn’t have to report their assets and could qualify for much more aid. In response to comments pointing out this loophole, the department said it is “researching all available options."“
https://www.wsj.com/articles/fafsa-redesign-congress-financial-aid-education-department-41507866