The FAFSA is the student’s form. The aid that the student receives is the student’s aid (not the parents’ unless the parent chooses to take out plus loans) and bills from the school go to the student. So yes, the FAFSA is the student’s form even though, yes, the parent’s information is required for some (most?) students.
Personally, I don’t think it’s ridiculous at all.
Believe it or not, many 18 year olds (and 17 year olds) are able to- and do- fill out the FAFSA. Almost all the low income students I knew, myself included, just had their parents turn over financial documents to them. No one ever encountered any issues. If something happened to our FAFSAs, we were alerted and then would call the school and figure out what happened. But I guess you have a little more motivation when a change in the FAFSA is likely the difference between you going to school and not. shrug