Some people on here seem to be really out of the loop. At least for the schools where I interviewed (and therefore attended a financial aid info session), parents' financial info is required for need-based aid. Yes, the federal government says you are independent when applying for graduate school, but schools can award you different amounts of need-based aid depending on your parents' financials. For example, any school that requires CSS Profile (in addition to FAFSA) needs parents' info, and UConn requires parents' tax info even though they don't use Profile.
I'm surprised how rude some posters are when they clearly lack the knowledge to respond to this thread. As much as it might be interesting to take out loans for 100% of my costs, it might be an intelligent move to take advantage of some FREE need-based money, even if it's only a few thousand per year. 90% loans is better than 100% loans. And yes, getting things like "tuition remission" (aka free money) does require parents' info, contrary to what Medwell and Dentaldawg32 would lead you to believe. Low financial standing of you and parents = more need-based aid money.
For example, see the UConn financial aid page:
http://studentservices.uchc.edu/financial/checklist.html
This page clearly states the following:
"Students interested in institutional funding such as Tuition Remission and University Loans must also complete and submit these additional forms.
UConn Application – Part II
Signed Copy of the Parent(s) 2009 Federal Tax Return
Copies of Parent(s) 2009 W-2 Statements"