Las Vegas, NV — Few people get excited about a trip to the DMV. Long lines, confusing paperwork, and hours of lost time have made the department a punchline for inefficiency. But one Las Vegas entrepreneur, Rafael Arroyo, saw the frustration as an opportunity and turned it into a thriving business.
Arroyo, who moved from Puerto Rico to Las Vegas as a child, started his career working in emissions testing. As he worked, he noticed a gap in the system: Nevadans were required to complete emissions testing before renewing their registration, but those two services were handled separately. So, Arroyo asked the obvious question: Why not do both in one place?
That question sparked what would become a business and eventually a political crusade.
At just 23, Arroyo launched his own emissions and registration business. But innovation rarely comes without resistance. Months after opening, Arroyo was told by a DMV compliance officer that his business was illegal. His crime? Doing something that hadn’t been done before.
“There was no law against it,” Arroyo explained. “There just weren’t any laws that covered it at all.” After pushing back and asking officials to show him where he was breaking the law, the state eventually conceded, he wasn’t. He could continue.
But that was only the beginning.
As demand for Arroyo’s services, and others like his, grew, so did the pushback from the DMV. In 2018, the state cut the industry’s access to the DMV system in half, threatening to shut them down entirely. That’s when Arroyo and fellow small business owners took their fight to Carson City.
They organized. They learned how legislation works. They found a sponsor for a bill to protect their businesses and won. While they didn’t get everything they hoped for, the new law guaranteed continued access to DMV systems and protected the businesses from arbitrary shutdowns.
Today, there are over 150 such businesses operating in the Las Vegas area, helping tens of thousands of Nevadans get their tags renewed faster and with less hassle, all at no cost to taxpayers.
Still, the fight isn’t over. “The battle continues,” Arroyo said. “But if you’re solving a problem, people will support you, even if the government doesn’t.”
For Arroyo, it’s all about taking that one small step. “You don’t have to be a politician to make a difference,” he said. “You just have to be willing to stand up and say, ‘No, this isn’t right.’”
