Kelly O'Donnell is an economist and public finance expert specializing in economic modeling and policy analysis. She is the principal of O'Donnell Economics & Strategy and has more than thirty years of experience in New Mexico public finance and economic policy.

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Dr. O'Donnell advises clients on fiscal and tax policy, health economics, and economic impact, and provides expert testimony in litigation and regulatory proceedings. Her clients include state agencies, local governments, universities, health systems, nonprofit organizations, and attorneys.

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​She previously served as chief research and policy officer at Homewise in Santa Fe. Before that, she was a research professor in the University of New Mexico School of Public Administration and a senior research fellow at the UNM Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy. Earlier, she held a series of leadership roles in the administration of New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, including Director of State Tax Policy, Deputy Cabinet Secretary for Economic Development, and Superintendent of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department. Before joining the Richardson administration, she was research director for New Mexico Voices for Children.

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She has testified before New Mexico legislative committees on hundreds of occasions, before state regulatory bodies including the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, and as an economic expert in the New Mexico courts. She holds a PhD in economics from the University of New Mexico.