LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - Oct 6, 2015) - Chuma Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: CHUM) finances, services and certifies companies and organizations in the lawfully organized cannabis industry.

Changes to medical marijuana regulation in California have created record demand for Chuma's compliance services. Assembly Bill 266 creating a statewide medical marijuana regulatory system is driving dispensaries to implement best compliance practices. The need for Chuma's services is the strongest we've seen since Assembly Bill 420 was introduced in 2004 and is responsible for driving record growth.

Specifically, our audited financial statements for the three months ending May 31, 2015 reported revenue of $97,000, a record quarter for Chuma.

Chuma Certified (our seed-to-sale compliance advisory services) has been proven to not only keep industry participants out of trouble with law enforcement, but also saves these same participants hundreds of thousands of dollars per year by implementing proper compliance protocols. Improper methods of collecting sales tax and underreporting revenue are two of the biggest compliance errors made by dispensaries. Furthermore, failure to keep adequate records of inventory and income can result in sales tax assessments that may result in a dispensary's financial failure. Another major pitfall for dispensaries is paying staff as independent contractors instead of as employees. Failing to properly withhold payroll taxes and failing to issue payroll stubs as required by federal and state law can result in major fines and penalties. Locations without liability insurance and without workers compensation are frequently setting themselves up for major financial losses in the event of a patient or employee injury.

Chuma Certified addresses these compliance issues with structured best business practices.

There is a surge of new people interested in entering the California green rush, with cannabis job fairs attracting thousands of applicants looking to jump in. To better service our existing clients and to meet the demand for our services statewide, we are enhancing our current services and are in the beta stage of launching a technological compliance solution, enabling our certification tools to be used online and in real-time.

Gone are the days where locations operated underground and avoided keeping records out of fear of prosecution. The new era of operating under the same guidelines of every other business is here now.

"All over California dispensaries and growers need 'out of the box' solutions to their compliance issues. Chuma has those solutions ready to go," said Paul Shively, Chuma's Chief Compliance Officer. "We can bring medical marijuana operations into compliance with current regulations and prepare them to smoothly transition to the statewide regulations which are coming."

Uniform, statewide regulation will transform the marijuana industry in California. Chuma is ready to help both existing clients and new clients keep their businesses in compliance with the law.

About Chuma Holdings Inc.

Chuma and our wholly owned subsidiaries provide turnkey financing and support solutions to the rapidly evolving and growing legal cannabis industry. We provide "seed to sale" key business services including financing, compliance consulting, dispensary solutions, banking and payment processing solutions, and marketing and sales consulting. Chuma's experienced team has over thirty-five years combined experience in the lawfully organized cannabis industry in California, and we are currently generating revenue from existing financing and service solutions. We are planning on expanding throughout California and bringing our array of services to each new state that legalizes the use of cannabis. For more information, please visit www.chuma.us. 

Safe Harbor Statement

This release contains "forward-looking statements" that include information related to future events and future financial and operating performance. The words "may", "would", "will", "expect", "estimate", "can", "believe", "potential" and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which that performance or those results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time they are made and/or management's good faith belief as of that time with respect to future events, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: the ability of Chuma to secure appropriate funding to implement its business plan, the demand for Chuma's services, Chuma's ability to maintain customer and strategic business relationships, the regulation of legal cannabis on both state and federal levels, the impact of competitive products and pricing, growth in targeted markets, and other information that may be detailed from time-to- time in Chuma's filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Chuma undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.