code: def _get_options(options_file=None):
      
  
      if options_file is not None:
          with open(options_file, 'r') as opt_file:
              options = json.loads(opt_file.read())
      else:
          options = {}
      return options
docs: Read in options_file as JSON.
  
          :param options_file: filename to return
          :type options_file: str
  
          :return: options as dictionary
          :rtype: dict