--smpi_off causes python codec errors

[mdavis36]

Running ats with --smpi_off throws the error below during a run, running the same ats test suite without --smpi_off completes successfully but makes cuda tests fail (as expected because we need it off for those tests on blueos machines).

  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/bin/ats", line 10, in <module>
    sys.exit(main())
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/__main__.py", l
ine 9, in main
    result = ats.manager.main()
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/management.py",
 line 686, in main
    core_result = self.core()
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/management.py",
 line 890, in core
    self.run(interactiveTests)
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/management.py",
 line 1016, in run
    unfinished = machine.scheduler.step()
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/schedulers.py",
 line 69, in step
    machine.checkRunning()
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/machines.py", l
ine 93, in checkRunning
    done = self.getStatus(test)
  File "/usr/WS2/sphapp/.jacamar-ci/spheral-builds/1175168/build_gitlab/install/.venv/lib/python3.9/site-packages/ats/machines.py", l
ine 162, in getStatus
    lines = f.readlines()
  File "/usr/WS2/wciuser/Spheral/spheral-spack-tpls/spack/opt/spack/__spack_path_placeholder__/__spack_path_placeholder__/__spack_pat
h_p/linux-rhel7-ppc64le/gcc-8.3.1/python-3.9.10-vm762d2wzoh2cvjmq2descxfxo7craxt/lib/python3.9/codecs.py", line 322, in decode
    (result, consumed) = self._buffer_decode(data, self.errors, final)

[dawson6]

We will test this with the current ATS branch on BlueOS to see if we can replicate this with the current code