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WASHINGTON — Hundreds of thousands of owners of Volkswagen diesel cars that skirt emissions standards may have to wait a year or more to get their cars fixed, the head of the automaker's US unit said at a contentious House hearing on Thursday.

WASHINGTON — The president of Volkswagen's American unit came under withering criticism on Thursday at a congressional hearing looking into the automaker's admission that for years it knowingly skirted federal emissions standards.

Michael Horn, the automaker's top official in the United States, repeatedly expressed remorse over the company's deception, but lawmakers were looking for more than an apology for its use of a so-called defeat device that fooled regulators during emissions testing.

The 21st Century Cures Act, passed in July by an overwhelming bipartisan majority of the House of Representatives, might just be the most significant piece of legislation affecting biomedical research. Ever.

DENVER (CBS4) – A Congressional panel will hold a hearing Thursday to look into the emissions cheating scandal by Volkswagen, and the owner of a Denver VW dealership will be among those testifying.

Fred Emich says the vehicles in question represent 25 percent of his business.

"It's obviously very impactful on our business and something we had no indication of or control over," Emich said.

Emich says he was shocked when he received an email ordering a stop-sale on 100 of his new and used diesel cars.

There's a push to try to raise the legal age for buying cigarettes in the United States. Right now it's 18, but that could change to 21 if a Colorado congresswoman gets her way.

Supporters of raising the smoking age say it's all about protecting teens. Ninety percent of smokers have their first cigarette by age 18 when they're more vulnerable to addiction. While state lawmakers have tried and failed to raise the age limit, U.S. Rep Diana DeGette, D-Colorado, says there's growing support for the idea across the country.