If the Roads and Traffic Authority agreed to a freedom-of-information request to issue a draft media statement about the notorious Adamstown railway crossing, the public would gain an insight to the deliberations and decisions of the NSW cabinet.

A NSW Ombudsman report says these two cases are among thousands of freedom-of-information applications that State Government departments and other organisations refuse each year.

In some instances, the drawn-out process leading to the refusal of an application costs the taxpayer thousands of dollars.

NSW Council of Civil Liberties president Cameron Murphy says more State Government departments and agencies are finding ways to prevent the issuing of information under the 1989 NSW Freedom of Information Act.

"There appears to be a mentality where [freedom-of-information] officers look for ways to deny applications rather than for ways to facilitate them being granted," he said.

The comments are borne out in figures from the Ombudsman's office that show there was a 30 per cent drop in the number of freedom-of-information applications that were granted in full between 1996 and 2006.

The Department of Education relied on schedule 1, clause 5 of the act concerning documents "affecting inter-governmental relations" to refuse The Herald's request for Hunter schools' performance results in the 2008 National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy Test.

The Herald sought the information to gain an insight to how the region's schools were performing in comparison with schools around the state.

In his response, deputy director-general (schools) Trevor Fletcher said discussion was under way between the NSW and Federal governments concerning the release of the information.

"It has been agreed that the NAPLAN [National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy Test] data, including data by school region, will be published by the NSW Department of Education and Training on their website in mid- to late February 2009," he said.