Las Vegas (CNN) In two separate exchanges during a town hall in Las Vegas on Saturday, Sen. Bernie Sanders was asked how he would distinguish between sex work and sex trafficking, an issue of particular relevance to people here. But the Vermont senator could not give a clear answer.

The first question came from a woman who said she had been a supporter of Sanders from the beginning, but wanted to know how he would proceed without conflating the two terms, and what he would do about the House and Senate bills, together known as FOSTA-SESTA, that were designed to reduce sex trafficking, but have in turn made it harder for sex workers to stay on the job.

"We're going to take a hard look at it, but we're not going to give you a definitive answer now," Sanders said in response.

While making clear that he did not want an increase in sex trafficking, Sanders added, "It's a complicated issue, but there are two sides to it, and I promise you we will take a hard look at it."

Later in the event, another person forced Sanders to address the fact that he did not give a direct answer when asked how he would handle the issue the first time.

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