If you are charged and convicted of a drug crime, you face mandatory licensing sanctions. You do not need to be operating a motor vehicle for this sanction to apply in your case. I have a client who was convicted of simple possession of marijuana when he was 12 years old. While the drug crime was expunged from his juvenile record, a review of his driving record reveals that he was convicted of this offense. The Michigan Secretary of State issued him a driver's license four years before he eligible for a driver's license. Why did they issue a driver’s license to a 12 year old? So the Secretary of State could suspend it, of course. Yes, this is incredibly stupid.
MCL 333.7408a states that:
(a) If the court finds that the person does not have a prior conviction within 7 years of the violation, the court shall order the secretary of state to suspend the operator's or chauffeur's license of the person for 6 months. If the court finds compelling circumstances under subsection (8) sufficient to warrant the issuance of a restricted license, the court may order the secretary of state to issue to the person a restricted license during all or a specified portion of the period of suspension, except that a restricted license shall not be issued during the first 30 days of the period of suspension.
(b) If the court finds that the person has 1 or more prior convictions within 7 years of the violation, the court shall order the secretary of state to suspend the operator's or chauffeur's license of the person for 1 year. If the court finds compelling circumstances under subsection (8) sufficient to warrant the issuance of a restricted license, the court may order the secretary of state to issue to the person a restricted license during all or any portion of the period of suspension, except that a restrictedlicense shall not be issued during the first 60 days of the period of suspension.
You can avoid the mandatory driver's license sanctions by keeping the drug offense off of your record. This can be accomplished by beating the charge or through a plea agreement such as HYTA or 7411 status.