Sen.(I-Vt.) said Friday that if elected president he would sign legislation creating a commission to study the issue of granting reparations to African-Americans.

Sanders, speaking at the National Action Network convention, was asked if he would support the bill introduced by Rep.(D-Texas) if it reached his desk as president.

"If the House and Senate pass that bill, of course I would sign it," he responded. "There needs to be a study."

The issue of reparations for descendants of slavery has become a topic of debate among his fellow 2020 Democratic primary candidates, including Sens.(D-Calif.) and(D-Mass.).

"But let me also say this: I think that what we need to do ... is to pay real attention to the most distressed communities in America," Sanders said. "We have got to use 10 percent of all federal funds to make sure that kids who need it get the education, get the jobs, get the environmental protection that they need and that would be a major focus of my efforts."

Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro knocked Sanders last month for saying there were better ways to address the issue than "just writing out a check."