Yes sorry I am saying - or trying to say - something different. Which I guess is: Pell not requiring a disclosure of assets is an oversight rather than a desired or fair or reasonable feature.
If my kid got a Pell grant and someone saw our schedule of assets they would be (rightly) outraged. They are literally for people with “financial need.” We are fortunate enough not to have this need, but would get it if we tried simply because the system for evaluating need has a loophole.
We are a small business and the last two years were slow and we also didn’t do any rollovers. So AGI was just enough to avoid Medicaid. We do have very substantial non-retirement investments and 529 accounts. I was shocked (and a little freaked out that I might have made some mistake) when FAFSA came up with a low SAI and said we might be eligible for a small amount of Pell Grant. We reported all our non-retirement investments and 529 on FAFSA correctly.
However, we have already gotten financial statements from colleges where we submitted the CSS profile and as expected there is no need based financial aid, only merit. I have no idea if they will take FAFSA into consideration to make changes.
If you are eligible for Pell based on FAFSA, you will get the Pell. It’s possible that the school will decrease their own need based grant by the Pell amount, though.
I agree, there are people who are going to be able to qualify for Pell who are not really within the intended scope of that program, but did not have to do anything illegal to get there.
But I also agree this is virtually inevitable in any administrable program. And if someone I know happens to be one of those people, I will not hold it against them if they take advantage.
Here is information about who can skip asset information:
Certain FAFSA questions determine whether a student is eligible for an exemption from asset reporting. Applicants online may be able to skip asset questions if
(I am going to add this: Receiving free lunch just because everyone gets free lunch is NOT a qualifier for meeting the means tested benefits portion. Only those who qualified for free/reduced lunch per the federal program regulations can legitimately claim that they received free lunch as a means tested benefit.)
Needless to say, you are not dead to me.
So if you are in the market for a bestie . . . .
Hate the game, not the player 
This has been an eye-opening exchange overall. And I agree 100% that any administrable program will be imperfect, contain loopholes, be gameable, etc. However, I would’ve thought that “someone” would’ve thought to close this Mack truck sized opening!
Thanks - I did not know that. It is a very small amount, but it definitely took me by surprise. It makes more sense to me now why some schools require CSS profile to get a better understanding of the financial picture.
Almost surely they will not if they are a CSS college to begin with. This is really the point of the CSS program (offered by the College Board). The CSS Profile (actually several possible profiles) collects a lot of data. Colleges looking to give out a lot of need aid can then use that data either with the default CSS model, or customize it as they see fit. But once they have gotten that far, there is no particular reason I know of why the far more limited FAFSA model should be an input into their process.
It doesn’t benefit that many people in terms of all the people who file FAFSA or even all the people who qualify for Pell. This rule has been in place for many, many years, so there is data available to determine if the number of people it benefits who are truly needy outweighs the number of people who get an unexpected bonus. And it’s also why schools use Profile if they meet need!
FAFSA is required by law if a school participates in federal aid (some schools do not, like Hillsdale). The federal portion of aid in a student’s award is based on FAFSA, and the rest of the aid is based on Profile.
It is actually more like they opened it up further recently, thanks to the FAFSA Simplification Act, which has resulted in the new FAFSA process this year.
I think the context to keep in mind is way, way more people are going to find it simpler to apply for aid they actually deserve as a result of these changes. Yes, a few more people are going to then get aid they didn’t really deserve. But I actually think this is one of those situations where we should not let the perfect be the enemy of the good, meaning that unless it is shown a lot of people are abusing this, then the simple benefits to many people might well be worth it.
I don’t think it got opened up more than before.
So when some financially sophisticated people I know were going over the changes, they at least seemed to think some people will find the new system somewhat easier to game than the old Simplified Needs Test.
I think part of why was that the Maximum Pell Grant clause for dependent students was satisfiable just by comparing parental AGI to whatever formula applied (single or not single) and the poverty guideline for the applicant’s family size and state of residence. A lot of these people seemed to think they could successfully target getting their AGI into that range, even though they could not have gotten through all the requirements under the Simplified Needs Test.
Today, DH is panicking about the new FAFSA when we have both kids in college after sophomore D26 enters college. However, D26 really wants to attend in state and she has better grades than D24, so I’m pretty sure that it will be do-able. D26 wants to attend U of A and after freshman year, would love for free with my sister and Kid can commute to school.
However, I’m going to let him chill for a bit. Let’s see what the financial aid depts from the 3 private schools come back with and then we can decide whether or not to panic. 
My people! My WhirleyPop gets so much use that it has an honorary place on the stove. I thought it would be a pain to use, but once you get the ratios down it is almost as easy and 100% customizable.
My toppings are usually just a good butter and salt, occasionally with a chocolatey something if I want to make it a theater experience.
we had a whirlypop but donated it because I really didn’t like cleaning it. I LOVE this popcorn maker, https://www.amazon.com/Original-Silicone-Microwave-Collapsible-Dishwasher/dp/B076TGYXDL which goes in the microwave/dishwasher, and is perfect with 1/3 cup of white popcorn kernels, 2t of refined coconut oil, and 1/2 t of fine sea salt.
Is it worth it? DH says just use a pot, but…. Does it make kettle corn?
Ooh nice! I wonder if D24 would like something like that for her dorm. She was asking me the other day if it was too early to start looking for dorm stuff. (I said yes, too early! Let’s get through the admission process first. What you could be doing now is finishing your honors college apps)
Apparently so! I found a recipe online but I’ve not tried it.