Guangdong is to replace Hong Kong as the leader of a committee that will make major decisions on the multibillion-dollar highway across the Pearl River Delta.
Officials close to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge project said the change would not give the province control or veto rights because decisions could be made only after consensus among all governments.
But it has prompted a suggestion that it would be fairer for representatives of the three governments to take turns presiding over meetings.
Lawmakers who will scrutinise Hong Kong's 6.75 billion yuan (HK$7.65 billion) contribution to the project said a fair mechanism must be set up to ensure each government had an equal say regardless of who led the group.
Hong Kong's Transport and Housing Bureau was named convenor when the committee was set up in 2003 to take care of preparatory work. But with construction due to start next month, the committee's name and function will be changed.
It will be part of a three-tier structure that determines important issues, including charges for using the bridge and vehicle admissions, which will affect its use and income.
The committee will be sandwiched between a high-level body comprising Beijing representatives, including the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Communications, and a new bureau under it to oversee the bridge's daily operation.