] Following the 1997 introduction of the optical
] memory-based %u201Cgreen card%u201D (the U.S. Permanent
] Resident Card) by the then U.S. Immigration and
] Naturalization Service (INS), the U.S. Department of
] State (DOS) selected the same optical card technology to
] enhance security on the U.S./Mexican border. So, in 1998,
] the optical memory-based BCC (or %u201CLaser Visa%u201D)
] was introduced and mandated for all new BCC applications
] and as a replacement for old, counterfeit prone
] documents.

This what they should be using in passports instead of RFID.

LaserCard Systems : Solutions : Optical Memory in Border Management