However, while the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has standardized computer software for estimating the likely human, structural and economic damages from natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes and earthquakes, no such tool exists for tsunamis, the GAO said.

That's one of the reasons California and Alaska haven't specifically assessed potential tsunami losses, while other at-risk areas have produced limited tsunami damage assessments, according to the report.

The GAO is recommending that NOAA work with FEMA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to create standardized tsunami loss estimation software.

In commenting on the report, the Department of Commerce, representing NOAA, agreed with the GAO's recommendations and indicated that steps will be taken to implement them. The Department of Homeland Security, representing FEMA, agreed with the recommendation that NOAA should work with FEMA and USGS to create standardized tsunami loss estimation software. However the department said that FEMA doesn't have the money for the software.